Archive | June, 2019

In conjunction with the “Forced to Flee” exhibit, there’s also a presentation of artwork by Tanja Boudal and it’s VERY interesting.

The majority of the pieces on display are like those shown here. As I understand it, she finds media pictures showing women in the midst of struggles and prints them on to fabric. She then alters one of the women using white fabric and black stitching. It’s a very striking effect.

One wall featured these pieces mounted perpendicular to the wall. This gives an interesting perspective and also makes a visually intriguing presentation.

This is the back side of the piece shown above.

Most fascinating, however, are the pieces made with a technique Boukal calls shadow knitting.

This one is of an Indian activist named Phoolan Devi. VERY subtle, right?

Now, check out this detail shot of the eyes. Invisible, I’d say.

But, look what happens when you view the piece from the side.

And here’s another, featuring Sarah-Ginaite.

I have no idea how she does this! I need to go back and see these pieces again.

You can see them, too, through August 24th in Melbourne, FL. They’re at the Ruth Funk Center for Textile Arts, which is always free. Enjoy!

Ellen Lindner

SAQA’s “Forced to Flee” exhibit is very powerful. It recently opened in Melbourne, FL at the Ruth Funk Center for Textile Arts. As you might imagine, many of the pieces had to do with the refugee crisis, but others showcased the horrors of war, and the power of nature. There are 30+ pieces in the exhibit, so this is just a little taste.

This piece, by Eunhee Lee is called “They are Also Us.” It was chosen for the featured wall image, and rightly so. It’s a very moving piece.

I remember seeing this quilt online and being very struck by it. But, what I didn’t notice until I saw it up close was the imagery of people fleeing in the background.

Mary Palmer’s piece, “Prayer,” was about 8 feet tall. The shapes are the characters of a Muslim prayer.

It’s made from life jacket fabric cut into squares and stitched in a very open pattern.

Karen Tauber’s piece also featured heavy use of life jacket fabric and imagery. It’s called “Life Jacket Graveyard of Lesvos,” and it depicts the “Mountain of Misery” created as thousands of refugees discarded their jackets and rafts on this small Greek island.

As you can tell by the shadows on the wall, the bottom portion is extremely three dimensional.

“Missing Migrants” is the name of Genevieve Attinger’s piece, shown below.

As you can see in the detail shot below, she’s used tiny little “mummy” dolls to represent the people. Barbed wire depicts their final obstacle.

Claire Passmore also shows the refugee’s journey, reading from bottom to top. Her title asks the question, “Lucky Ones?”

She depicted those who died with sheer bodies, as seen below. Very moving.

And here’s one of the few pieces that didn’t focus on refugees. It’s called “Firestorm,” by Grace H. Wever. It depicts the firestorms which raged in bombed cities during World War I.

She depicted the fire very effectively with a variety of materials and techniques. It almost looked like it would burn you if you touched it.

All the artists in this exhibit approached their subjects in very thoughtful ways. The layers of meaning and subtle details gave strength to their stories.

Although not a happy upbeat exhibit, it is WELL worth visiting. It’s on display until August 24th, so you’ve got plenty of time to see it. (And it’s free!)

Ellen Lindner