Pegando la hebra…

“I find that, when the work is made with threads, it’s considered a craft; when it’s on paper, it’s considered art.”

This statement was made by Anni Albers, one of the most innovative artists of the twentieth century, who was a pioneer of textile art, and trained at the Bauhaus, the prestigious German school of art and design. The statement is no longer relevant because of the work of artists who, like Albers, have experimented, investigated and created works of art with infinite technical and material resources from different types of textile fibers. What was considered an artisan activity and linked mainly to the feminine universe, today has become a form of universal artistic expression, using all the intrinsic possibilities of these materials to create unique visual languages with unlimited possibilities.

Communication, as one of the fundamental objectives of art, is achieved with these pieces naturally, almost ancestral and telluric, inhabiting our imagination from time immemorial. Who doesn´t have recollections of certain textiles or textile objects that persist in our memory over time? These materials, for better or worse, evoke our origins and our development, they are objects that tell our history. Each strand, thread or fiber can contain a unique story.

“Pegar la hebra” is a colloquial Spanish verbal phrase that means, according to the dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy, “to enter into conversation spontaneously, or prolong a conversation longer than usual.” The word “hebra” refers to a strand of fiber or a piece of thread. The expression is equivalent to the English language idioms, “shooting the breeze” or “engaging in idle chit chat”.

The exhibit Pegando la hebra (Weaving a Conversation), establishes a conversation between the exhibiting artists, both premeditated and prolonged for as long as necessary. And we are invited. Just as in the time of our mothers and grandmothers who met at the doors of their kitchens or houses at sunset, to sew, embroider or weave and at the same time to chat and share experiences. In this way, they would take care of themselves emotionally while simultaneously taking care in the creative process of each piece.

Thus, each of the artists presents a particular version of this conversation. From the objects and garments specifically woven by Anna Jonsson, Charo Corrales, and Maribel Domenech, to the interventions on used garments by Aline Part or the unwoven dress of María Gimeno. The pieces manufactured and sewn collectively like those of María Bueno and Cristina Artés, created with the women neighbors from Huete. Also, the photographs of everyday objects wrapped in wool by Kae Newcomb or the sculptures with textile materials by Anamusma, Yolanda Relinque, and Isabel Cuadrado. The fabric-based installation of Kima Guitart’s own design or María Muñoz´s installation created with ceramic pieces and threads in a musical pentagram and Elisa Torreira’s installation of dresses or the articulations of Sara Coleman’s desire. Finally, Paula Noya´s three-dimensional baroque still life, or the embroidered diptychs by Sandra Sarasola and Concha Romeu.

All of them refer us to moments lived or experiences yet to come. All of them pegando la hebra… weaving a conversation…