[Bangkok] Art of Memory in Contemporary Textiles

Jim Thompson House Museum and Art Center proudly presents, "mnēmonikos: Art of Memory in Contemporary Textiles", to be held in Bangkok, Thailand, from 22 August 2013 to 22 February 2014.

Curated by the renowned Japanese textiles expert, Yoshiko Iwamoto Wada, this show will feature 28 artists from Southeast Asia and beyond, whose expressive artworks relate to their memory, culture and environment and engage in dialog with materials and processes. Wada attempts to explore the contemporary textiles at the molecular level.

This exhibition will examine a wide range of artistic expression through various media, such as dyeing, painting, weaving, stitching, printing, laser etching, heat transfer and vacuum coating of metal onto fabric. In their work the artists reflect personal emotion, social and environmental awareness, cultural values, and technological innovation. What unifies them in their creative endeavor is enthusiasm for the tactile and dimensional possibilities inherent in cloth and fascination with the idea that cloth holds the memory of its use or the action performed on it.

Contemporary textile objects open a window onto the daily life experience of those who created them. Each object reveals the perspectives of all those involved in its genesis and transformation. Our world today has changed dramatically from the distant past when neither money nor time was spared to create incredibly beautiful and precious textiles. In our time of amazing technological developments and an increasingly pervasive information network, contemporary artists and artisans are tapping into ancient knowledge and skills and revitalizing our shared cultural heritage — applying perseverance and innovation to create opulent, and sometimes provocative, textiles in the name of art.

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