Under the Skin

The exhibition at the TextielMuseum brings together sculptures, installations and films by artists near and far to explore vulnerability, life, pain and protection.

With sculptures of fabric and human hair inhabiting a realm between the human and animal; Icaruslike swan wings that symbolise man’s powerlessness; and blankets twisted into large skeletons: “Under the Skin” is about vulnerability, life, pain and protection.

This exhibition brings together sculptures, installations and films by artists near and far. The themes touch our very being, as does the material of choice: textiles.

Top: Chrystl Rijkeboer, Old sins cast long shadows, 2014. Courtesy Chrystl Rijkeboer. Photo Edwin Roelofs. Above: Birgit Dieker, Innerer Schweinehund, 2014. Courtesy Stiftung Stadtmuseum Berlin. Photo Jürgen Baumann

Textiles are soft, flexible and tactile. They offer warmth, protection and comfort. We cover ourselves in them every day, and in art they often denote femininity. Yet nowadays, textiles have come to evoke much broader associations. So intimately entwined with humanity, this medium lends itself to addressing life’s great issues. From threatening balaclavas and sweet flowery dresses to “harnesses” of discarded carpets, or antlers bound in cloth: the pieces in “Under the Skin” explore feelings of attraction and repulsion.

<b>Left</b>: Alet Pilon, <i>Not There</i>, 2010. Courtesy Alet Pilon. Photo: Hein van den Heuvel. © Pictoright Amsterdam, 2015. <b>Right</b>: Rebecca Horn, <i>Paradieswitwe</i>, 1975. Curtesy The Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, Bonn Art Museum. Photo: Rebecca Horn. © Rebecca Horn/VG-­‐Bild Kunst. © Pictoright Amsterdam 2015
Maartje Korstanje, <i>Untitled</i>, 2014. Photo Josefina Eikenaar/TM
Didier Faustino, <i>Home Suit Home</i>, 2013. Courtesy Galerie Michel Rein, Paris. Photo Florian Kleinefenn / courtesy the artist & Michel Rein, Paris/Brussels
<b>Left</b>: Hinke Schreuders, <i>Bird</i>, detail, 2007. Courtesy Pieter en Marieke Sanders. Photo Hinke Schreuders. <b>Right</b>: Anne van de Pals, <i>Blauwe Dubbelrug</i>, 2008. Courtesy Anne van de Pals. Photo Anne van de Pals
Karin Arink, <i>Fragmented Body Double</i>, 2014. Photo Josefina Eikenaar/TM


30 May – 20 September 2015
Under the Skin
TextielMuseum
Goirkestraat 96, Tilburg