Tentacular Threads Exhibition
Part of NY Textile Month
At Kathie Halfin STUDIO, NY USA September 5-19, 2024
Opening event: September 5th 5-8pm Closing event: September 19th 6-8 pm Exhibition: September 5th to 19th
Free admission
The exhibition “Tentacular Threads” delves into the intricate relationship between hybridity, the experience of everyday, and the process of making to explore how desperate elements converge to create new narratives and experiences. Featuring artists Natalie Adgnot, Frid Branham, Rina AC Dweck, Kathie Halfin, Yudit Katz, Elizabeth Tolson, the show investigates the concept of tentacular thinking—a term coined by scholar Donna Haraway to describe a holistic approach to consciousness. Tentacularity acknowledges the multiplicity of converging and expanding threads of sentience that co-exist together, much like tentacles that allow organisms to sense, feel, and interact with their environment.
These artists explore “Tentacularity” through diverse materials and tactile experiences to connect with one another and the world around us, re-imagining the possibilities and forms of fiber art. Adgnot contrasts objective facts with cognitive biases through sculptures inspired by bird-related idioms and includes materials such as horse hair and thermoplastic to mark chapters of her life. Branham highlights the marks and flows in our environment left by nature and community through the practices of crocheting and drawing. Dweck’s hair sculptures are intertwined with juxtapositions, braiding together organic and synthetic materials to reflect everyday diversity, while Halfin’s woven sculptures re-establish a connection with diverse life forms through activation of human senses. Katz’s weavings evoke the architecture of the human body, inviting contemporary connections in fiber art, and Tolson creates ceramic looms threaded with delicate textiles to explore themes of fertility and motherhood.
The exhibition celebrates diverse forms of making, with artists communicating their hand-woven, sewn, braided, and crocheted narratives through haptic labor. Utilizing materials such as paper, raffia, human and animal hair, clay, discarded items, and found objects, they build bonds with their everyday surroundings. Through their work, these artists collectively emphasize the interconnectedness of lived experiences, natural environment and cultural narratives, creating a rich tapestry of sensory and conceptual engagement that bridges gaps in understanding of contemporary fiber art.
Find more exhibition information online here.
Image courtesy of Kathie Halfin.
