“Weavings anew” exhibition
MOMus-Museum of Contemporary Art-Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art and State Museum of Contemporary Art Collections (TIF-HELEXPO premises)
19 November 2021 – 27 March 2022
A colourful thread unrolls at the premises of the MOMus-Museum of Contemporary Art-Macedonian Museum of Contemporary Art and State Museum of Contemporary Art Collections, on account of the exhibition “Weavings anew”, that is taking place in Thessaloniki from November 19, 2021, until March 27, 2022.
It is a thread that connects the emblematic works of the Cottage Industry department, from its establishment in 1963 by the Royal Welfare under the direction of Ioannis Faitakis, the “father” of tapestry, with some of the wall textiles presented at Hilton in 1965 as part of the exhibition “‘Tapisseries’ based on designs by Greek painters”. It is a thread that continues with the weaving experimentations of Niki Kanagini and the selected carpets that were based on designs by important Greek artists and were manufactured in the 1970s by the Tapis company for the gallery “Nees Morphes”. It is a thread that takes us from the tapestries of Alex Mylona to the large-scale textiles of Michalis Katzourakis for the decoration of cruise ships. The yarn ends with a tribute to Joice and Sydney Loch, the couple from Australia that moved to Ouranoupoli, where they revived the art of rug weaving, creating jobs for Asia Minor refugees and playing a key role in the revival of the local economy.
The exhibition “Weavings anew” is a new approach to the 2019 exhibition “Weavings” at the Benaki Museum | Pireos 138, curated by Irini Orati and Constantinos Papachristou, which had affirmed the revival of research interest in Greek tapestry and its short, but rich history in recent years. Part of the exhibition will move to the Museum of the City of Volos in the spring of 2022.
As art historian and curator of the “Weavings anew” exhibition Areti Leopoulou aptly remarks: “Every artist and artwork presented in the exhibition – weavings, paintings, engravings, sculptures - aims at pointing out the dynamic of the creative process, which is not isolated from the wider milieu and the people inhabiting it: these works render visible a peculiar continuation and achievement of the goals set by the 1930s generation up until the 1970s. The cordial coexistence -if not identification- of abstraction with the capabilities and limitations of weaving techniques are noticeable; the autonomy, but also the interaction of artistic mediums is revealed; the dialogue between the artist and the artisan facilitated by weaving is revealed; above all, the potential of the artwork to be liberated from the palimpsest stereotype and become part of everyday life as a decorative and practical object is firmly established. As is the notion that these works, both in their artistic and more folkish iterations, are an integral part not only of our folkloric, but also of our artistic tradition.”
The exhibition is accompanied by a bilingual catalogue, co-produced by MOMus-Museum of Contemporary Art and the Museum of the City of Volos.
Artists: George Vakalo, Spyros Vasiliou, Opi Zouni, Niki Kanagini, Michalis Katzourakis, Vaso Katraki, Kostas Koulentianos, Yiannis Moralis, Alex Mylona, Dimitris Mytaras, Nikos Nikolaou, Sotiris Sorogas, Jannis Spyropoulos, Yannis Tsarouchis, Ioannis Faitakis, Nikos Chatzikyriakos-Gikas, Loch Textiles.
Collectors and institutions that lent works for this exhibition include: Alpha Bank, Benaki Museum/Ghika Gallery, National Center of Social Solidarity (EKKA), Vorres Museum, The Jannis and Zoe Spyropoulos Foundation, the Yannis Tsarouchis Foundation, the Teloglion Foundation of Arts A.U.Th., Julia Dimakopoulou, Maria Vasiliou, Marianna Katraki, the Kanagini family, Michalis Katzourakis, Alexandros Zounis, MOMus-Museum Alex Mylona.
Educational programs
Educational programs for all school levels as well as workshops for different audiences (adults, children, families, special groups) can be organized on appointment. Looms on loan from the Folklife & Ethnological Museum of Macedonia & Thrace will be used as part of selected educational activities. Contact/appointments: (tel:) 2310 240002 (extensions: 15 & 16).
Guided tours
Guided tours to the exhibition “Weavings anew” will be taking place at 12:00 on the following Sundays: November 21 & 28, 2021, December 12 & 19, 2021, January 9 & 23 2022, February 6 & 20, 2022, March 13 & 27, 2022. Joining a tour requires a valid ticket to the exhibition and booking a place by contacting this number: 2310 240002 or visiting reception.contemporary@momus.gr.
The exhibition venue complies with all public health and safety regulations and requirements. Entry is allowed upon presenting either a certificate of vaccination or recovery, or a rapid antigen test obtained within the previous 48 hours. Mask use is mandatory.