AT THE DENVER ART MUSEUM IN
COLORADO, AN EXHIBITION OFFERS
SOMETHING FOR EVERYONE.
FROM CONTEMPORARY ARTISTS TO
THE AMERICAN WEST,
PRE-COLUMBIAN WEAVINGS
TO NAVAJO DESIGN,
"SPUN: ADVENTURES IN TEXTILES"
IS REDEFINING WHAT SOME MAY
TYPICALLY PERCEIVE AS ART.
♪
"SPUN" AT THE DENVER ART
MUSEUM IS A CAMPUS-WIDE
EXHIBIT THAT WRAPS PEOPLE'S
MINDS IN TEXTILES.
AND FROM PRE-COLUMBIAN
WEAVINGS TO CONTEMPORARY LIGHT
INSTALLATIONS, DAM IS PUSHING
THE BOUNDARIES OF WHAT ONE
MIGHT CONSIDER TO BE FIBER
ART.
IT'S AN EYE-OPENER FOR WHAT
TODAY WE TAKE FOR GRANTED.
THIS EXHIBITION FUNCTIONS ON
SO MANY DIFFERENT LEVELS.
ONE IS EXACTLY THAT, FUNCTION,
HOW DIFFERENT TEXTILES MIGHT
HAVE BEEN USED OR WERE USED,
WHETHER IT'S FOR WARMTH AND
COMFORT WHEN YOU'RE SLEEPING,
PROTECTION, SAY, FOR RITUALS.
THERE ARE SO MANY DIFFERENT
TECHNIQUES REPRESENTED IN THIS
EXHIBITION.
PEOPLE THINK OF WEAVING AND
EMBROIDERY PERHAPS OFF THE TOP
OF THEIR HEADS BUT BY
EXTENSION QUILTING AND
COVERLETS, TAPESTRY, BLOCK
PRINTING, RESIST DYEING, SO
ALL THE DIFFERENT WAYS TO
DECORATE THAT PIECE OF CLOTH.
BUT IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT
CLOTH FOR TODAY'S ARTISTS.
MANY ARE EXPERIMENTING,
WEAVING TOGETHER UNEXPECTED
MATERIALS AND ECHOING THE
LAYERS AND DEPTH FOUND IN MORE
TRADITIONAL TEXTILE WORKS.
THERE ARE A PLETHORA OF
MATERIALS AVAILABLE TO ARTISTS
TODAY, AND THIS IS SUCH AN
INCREDIBLE REPRESENTATION OF
OVER 40 YEARS OF CONTEMPORARY
ART.
AND YOU CAN REALLY SEE,
WHETHER IT'S TEXTILES, WOOD,
CHARRED WOOD, LIGHT, THERE'S
DIFFERENT MEDIUMS THROUGHOUT
THIS EXHIBITION THAT REALLY
LURE YOU IN.
IT'S DIFFERENT THAN THE
HISTORIC TEXTILE GALLERIES
WHERE THERE IS MUCH MORE OF A
FUNCTIONAL ASPECT TO THE WORK.
IN THIS SHOW, IT'S MORE
ARTISTS OF OUR OWN TIME
THINKING ABOUT ISSUES THAT ARE
RELEVANT TO US LIVING TODAY.
THIS IS A YOUNG ARTIST.
SHE'S TAKEN APART CHILDREN'S
TEDDY BEARS AND THEN
RECONSTITUTED THEM.
THIS RUG AND THIS WALL PIECE
AND CREATES A SORT OF
RORSCHACH PATTERN, THE
INK-BLOT TEST.
SO THEY ARE HAVING FUN WITH
MATERIALS AND THINKING ABOUT
HOW WHEN YOU TAKE THEM OUT OF
THEIR NORMAL CONTEXT THEY
MIGHT MEAN SOMETHING
DIFFERENT.
I MADE THESE WORKS IN THE
EARLY '90s AT THE HEIGHT OF
THE AIDS CRISIS.
A LOT OF MY FRIENDS WERE
DYING, AND THIS WORK REALLY
WAS IN RESPONSE TO THAT.
SO FOR ME TO PLOW MY WAY
SYSTEMATICALLY THROUGH TIME BY
KNITTING FOR ABOUT 10 YEARS
OF KNITTING ABOUT 12 HOURS,
13 HOURS A DAY.
SO IT WAS A WAY FOR ME TO KEEP
TRACK AND ALSO TO MEDITATE ON
THE PASSAGE OF TIME.
ARTIST OLIVER HERRING'S
WORK IS A REFLECTION OF HIS
EXPERIENCE.
I ASKED CURATOR ALICE ZREBEIC
HOW OTHER PEOPLE THROUGHOUT
HISTORY HAVE USED MATERIALS
AND AS A RESULT, WHAT WE LEARN
ABOUT CULTURE.
TEXTILES SAY A LOT ABOUT
CULTURE.
IT COULD BE THE MATERIAL,
BECAUSE CERTAIN AREAS OF THE
WORLD HAVING FLOCKS OF SHEEP,
AND THEY MIGHT BE MAKING THEIR
TEXTILES FROM WOOL.
OTHERS MIGHT HAVE FLAX OR
LINEN.
OTHERS ARE SILK-GROWING
CULTURES.
SO WHERE YOU LIVE IN THE
WORLD, THAT'S GOING TO
INFLUENCE TO A DEGREE WHAT
YOUR TEXTILES ARE MADE FROM.
OF COURSE, TRADE IS A BIG PART
OF THAT, AND PEOPLE ARE ALWAYS
INCORPORATING THINGS TAKEN
FROM A DISTANCE INTO THEIR
OWN.
COLOR CHOICES CAN BE DICTATED
BY CULTURE.
YOU'LL SEE LOT OF INDIGO IN
THE SHOW.
MANY OF THOSE TEXTILES ARE
FROM JAPAN, WHEREAS THE UZBEK
IS A FLAME OF COLORS.
THEY ARE IN AN ART MUSEUM, AND
WE ARE APPRECIATING THEM FOR
EITHER A FABULOUS DESIGN,
BEAUTIFUL WORKMANSHIP, BUT
OBJECT.
SO WE'RE HERE IN THE QUILT
STUDIO, WHICH IS
PART OF "SPUN."
WHY DID THE MUSEUM
WANT TO INCLUDE A SPACE
LIKE THIS, JENNA?
THIS IS NOT YOUR GRANDMA'S
QUILT STUDIO.
THIS IS REALLY ABOUT
CONTEMPORARY PRACTICE, SO
REALLY THINKING ABOUT THE WAYS
THAT COLORS AND PATTERNS AND
DIFFERENT TEXTURES WORK, WHICH
IS EXACTLY THE SAME PROCESS
THAT A PAINTER OR A SCULPTOR
GOES THROUGH IN MAKING THE
CREATIVE DECISION.
THERE ARE LABELS THROUGHOUT
THE EXHIBITION.
YOU CAN USE YOUR MOBILE PHONE
AND TAKE A PICTURE OF THE QR
CODE BENEATH THE LABEL, AND IT
TAKES YOU TO VIDEOS AND THE
ARTISTS TALKING ABOUT THEIR
WORK.
I WOULD VENTURE TO SAY THAT
ALL ART IS INTERACTIVE.
A LOT OF CONTEMPORARY ARTISTS,
THE VIEWER COMPLETES THE
PIECE, SO IT IS AN INTERACTIVE
THING.
WE ALL BRING BAGGAGE AND
DIFFERENT MEANINGS TO WORK.
THE TRANSPOSITION IS LOOKING
AT INTERACTIVITY THROUGH
TECHNOLOGY, AND THAT'S A VERY
NEW THING.
ONLY THE ACCESSIBILITY OF
YOUNG ARTISTS BEING ABLE TO
WORK WITH TECHNOLOGY TO MAKE A
PIECE LIKE THAT HAS ONLY COME
ABOUT IN THE LAST DECADE.
YOUR MOVEMENT IS PICKED UP BY
CAMERAS THAT YOU DON'T SEE AND
IS TRANSLATED THROUGH SOFTWARE
TO CREATE THIS MOVEMENT THAT'S
PROJECTED ONTO THE WALL.
IT BECOMES THIS OPTICAL
BEAUTIFUL.
BUT IT ALSO MAKES YOU AWARE OF
YOUR BODY AND OWN MOVEMENTS.
PIECE.
IT'S A VERY DIFFERENT WAY OF
THINKING ABOUT MAKING ART.
SO ART IS NO LONGER JUST A
PAINTING OR A SCULPTURE OR
PHOTOGRAPHY, FOR THAT MATTER.
CONTEMPORARY ART.
YOU CAN SEE THE SORT OF
TRANSGRESSION OF HOW THEY ARE
ALL CONTINUING TO PUSH THE
LIMITS OF WHAT A PIECE OF WOOD
CAN DO OR JUST FABRIC AND
MATERIALS, IN GENERAL, TO
CONVEY THESE VERY DEEP,
THOUGHTFUL, EMOTIONAL, AND
POLITICAL RESPONSES.
FOR MORE ON THIS EXHIBIT,
VISIT: