Art in life - Wiinstedt Art Gallery
Textile Art from Around the World in Copenhagen
Textile Art from Around the World
Wiinstedt Art Gallery is a long-awaited initiative. We aim to showcase some of the beautiful and expressive textiles, that we have acquired and brought home, from our adventurous carpet-journeys around the world. Now, we have the opportunity to exhibit many of these distinctive and artistic works.
Traditionally, our focus has been on the oriental world, and that’s where we have the most, but we also have textiles from North America, South America, Africa, and Europe.
Many of the textiles may be fragments, contributing to the expression of pieces of a story. Some of the textiles we have chosen to frame. We frame them, among other reasons, in an attempt to show that this can highlight the artworks. It’s not necessarily required to frame them. You can also hang them directly on the wall.
Trip to Kamseh nomads on Mount Damavand in northern Iran 2018.
Framed Uzbek Suzani embroidery and Vietnamese shaman robe.
A Closer Look at the Artwork
Whether you choose a framed version or hang it directly on the wall, adding some light can always enhance the experience. It’s a bit trickier, of course, when the textile is framed because there can often be reflections in the glass.
In many instances, we have used UV glass, which reduces reflections and provides a sharper focus on the artwork. However, this can be a matter of personal preference, depending on where you would like to hang your artwork. You can also choose to place your textile on the floor when framed, to create a different artistic expression.
Wall Textiles as Artistic Decoration
Some textiles may have served as decorations, such as tablecloths or other draperies, and are so large that they can look incredibly good on the wall, much like a wall hanging. Many of these textiles are very beautiful, and one can choose to emphasize their beauty by adding some light.
Furthermore, many of them are fragments of garments, meaning they have been part of a dress or a cloak, or a portion of a bag, with only a piece remaining. But they are still beautiful, and you can sense the history behind their use, if not in reality, then at least in imagination. They provide that fantastic artistic expression that can inspire, without necessarily revealing or knowing what they inspire. Therefore, it is the artistic aspect of the work that is crucial to one’s experience.
Various textiles from Turkmenistan, India, China, Japan, Turkey and Iraq respectively.
“Chirpy” antique Turkmen headdress.
Clothing and Indigenous Cultures
A portion of the textiles we have in the gallery are originally worn garments, of which many of them come from so-called indigenous cultures, primarily because we are dealing with old textiles. Both the actual clothing items and the fragments originate from various cultures, including the numerous nomadic tribes around the world.
It’s fascinating to discover where and how these textiles were once used by the people who created them. It’s part of the journey we embark on, when we come across the many intricate and beautiful textiles in our path.
