Bringing together a curated selection of textile and costume works, TEXTILES showcases new works such as Stand Up (2019) alongside costumes and masks previously used for performances in Dubai, UAE (2008); Mapping Vienna, at the Opera Ball in Vienna, Austria (2010); and Crossroads Stein, in Stein am Rhein, Switzerland (2018).
Hefuna's black dresses are minimalistic cut and style and based on the simplest geometric shapes: squares, rectangles, circles. A few scissor cuts, stitches and darts turn black Egyptian cotton into clothes that only reveal the presence of a body. Instead of patterns or designs, there are letters, words, connected dots and lines, similar to the artist’s well known drawings on tracing paper. The clothes and huge bags with letters act as posters, their graffiti like words and signs admonishing one to read.
Susan Hefuna brings ethnic influences from her dual Germany and Egyptian heritage and from her journeys around the world. Hefuna works within TEXTILES are inspired by the Swabian-Alemannic carnival which she has great enthusiasm for. The events, which take place in the settlement areas of the Germanic tribes of the traditions of the Swabians and Alemanns mixes in Hefuna's works with her interest for African traditions and her admiration for the Ballets Russes costumes.
Hefuna’s work forms intersections between cultures. Her unique garment pieces become moving messages. Hefuna's art works are moving slowly from one point to another through time and space. Patience is beautiful reminds us of ceremonial priest's vestments. Susan Hefuna's message in her textile works is quiet, subtle and at the same time strong: Anta Omri adorning a costume is the title of a song by the famous Egyptian singer Om Kalthoum. You are my Destiny. She - that's each of us.
About Susan Hefuna
Susan Hefuna’s work has been included in numerous international solo and group exibitions. Exhibitions include: But a Storm Is Blowing from Paradise curated by Sara Raza, Galleria d’Arte Moderna (GAM), Milan; The Creative Act: Performance Process Presence, Guggenheim Abu Dhabi; Contemporary Art of the Middle East, LACMA, Los Angeles; Drawing Through the Twentieth Century, MoMA, New York. A mayor survey of her practice curated by Hoor Al Quasimi Susan Hefuna: Another Place was held at Bait Al Serkal, Sharjah Art Foundation. Hefuna’s work has also been included in the Sydney Biennale, Venice Biennale, Seville Biennial, Riwaq Biennale and Sharjah Biennial. Susan Hefuna was awarded the international Contemporary Drawing Prize of the Daniel & Florence Guerlain Art Foundation in Paris. Her work is part of the permanent collections at the Pompidou, Paris: Guggenheim, NYC and Abu Dhabi; British Museum and V&A, London.
Title: TEXTILES
Address: 55 Eastcastle Street, London, W1W 8EG
Website: www.piartworks.com
Dates: 24 May - 22 June 2019
Private View: 23 May 2019, 6.30pm - 8.30pm
Opening Hours: Tuesday to Friday, 10am to 6pm, Saturday 12pm to 6pm
Travel: Oxford Circus Tube Station