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Volume 35 and its another big one!
The MoMA has some phenomenal shows on right now that (clearly) I recommend. And in keeping with our budget friendly theme of late, you can reserve free tickets if you are a New York State resident for Friday nights, hours are 5:30 pm - 8:30 pm. Go for a nice dinner after and that is a fantastic Friday evening activity if I must say so.
The term art is both entirely vague and yet definitively exclusionary. Having studied design the question of what is art versus design often came up. While my favorite analogy is design is to art, as a square is to a rectangle; where does that leave craft. Whoever first thought to themselves, craft must then be a rhombus please reach out to me so we can laugh together!
Now craft I know might not be at the same hierarchy, but also who decided that? Because really my drawn out question is what is textiles. There is an association with textiles that leave art and design and go to this craft category. Yes we say textile arts but we know people don't typically view it as art in the same way a painting is revered. And saying it is craft feels like a hobby and not something worthy of curatorial attention.
There is something about it feeling contrived as opposed to freeing in the way a brushstroke can. That then to me becomes design, the plotting and planning to engineer an idea into a beautiful piece of work. But seldom do we hear textile design unless specifically about its surface pattern.
Does it matter the presentation? A hung textile like a painting is a more obvious art acceptance. So is it in it's packaging? But then Marcel Duchamp's fountain would not have been the success it was if so, because we would accept textile as a sculpture. Unless the fragility of threads matter, can sculpture not be tenuous?
My whole stream of consciousness is exactly what this show is about, challenging the idea of fine art and craft and all the threads in between. Textiles get lumped to the side, seen as a pastime, or even just a vehicle to create something greater. It is so exciting to see a major institute like MoMA give a platform for these works. On view is a great span of talent from the beloved Anni Albers, to previous STWT artist Igshaan Adams, to other contemporaries like Liz Collins.
My final though on the matter (for now) is just that if the textile itself serves no function aside from beauty, it is art, and with function it is design. Craft remains as it is, its own delineation of work. Textiles themselves touch us all and hit home in different ways. Because if anyone were to say it best it would be Anni Albers..."Threads were the earliest transmitters of meaning"
In the nature of all things textiles, it's gotta be an Artwear piece. The Mini version is perfect for a light avant garde look. Made of repurposed fabric whether from the leftover bits after cutting production or giving new life to a rejected fit sample, this zero-waste approach is one of a kind. Worn over the Princeton Top, our cotton slub shrunken fit t-shirt is a go to for anything from casual vibes to layering up a look.
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