The transition from art center to museum requires many changes, from operational structures, programming to the manner in which art is presented and exhibited. One thing however, that will not change in this transition, is the Kendall Art Center’s–and now MoCA-Americas’, view collaboration as our cornerstone. As the museum is meant to service the community, MoCA-Americas will not be a closed off museum, dedicated only to its permanent collections, but also continuing our educational and external programs of traveling shows, Art in the Community, Women in the Arts, SOFLO New Artists, which focuses on giving senior MFA students the chance to graduate with exhibition experience, and of course, loaning our work for other museums and institutions to exhibit and enjoy.
This is part of how MoCA-Americas will establish trust and fruitful relationships, not just with local Miami and Florida museums, but nationwide. Therefore, MoCA-Americas is dedicated to reserving part of its space and annual slots for traveling and temporary exhibitions, inviting new curators, artists, institutions, academics and students to bring new ideas to our door. We are proud to host, Subverting Materials: Textile and Fiber Art by Women Artists curated by Francine Birbragher as a shining example of the type of collaborative spirit we hope to maintain in the future.
Since ancient times, the number nine has been associated with the nine months of pregnancy and represents the feminine principle of creation. On the other hand, according to Hindu philosophy, the creators of the classical arts found nine emotions or artistic moods that are part of the expressions of life. With these principles in mind, nine women artists were chosen for this exhibition. Each of them uses domestic or artisanal techniques, transforming or subverting them to give them an artistic identity and express different messages and emotions.
Ivonne Ferrer presents two figurative works made of ceramics, fiber, and fabric, in which she alludes to the feminine gift of procreation and giving continuity to life. Sacred Woman (2022) presents the woman as a goddess who conceives, creates, decomposes, and recomposes, using geometric forms present in nature. In a complementary way, Sacred Equilibrium (2022) presents the woman as the center of the universe, represented by a piece woven with highly colorful abstract shapes.
The combination of ceramic and fiber is also present in the installation by Milena-Martínez Pedrosa, The Truth Is Rarely Pure (2022), in which she represents spirituality and magic as a fundamental part of human reaction and behavior. Conceptually, the work invites us to reflect on the symbiosis of power between the trap and the trapped character. The red-toned ropes that weave the net cross the parts of a dismembered body trapped in it, while at the bottom, two “bloody” hands allude to the liberating power of faith and prayer.
Inspired by the craftsmanship and the oral tradition of ancient cultures, Aimée Pérez creates works that combine ceramics and weaving. In Lilith Unearthed (2022), the artist represents the first woman to emerge from Adam’s rib. She is considered a demon-woman due to her rebellious attitude but also a symbol of strength and beauty. According to the artist, the two ceramic heads represent life and death, while the woven flowers that intertwine them symbolize the birth of a new woman.
The practices associated with feminine tasks and the use of everyday materials and objects have been constant in the work of Aimée García. In the series Discurso Supremacista (Supremacist Speech, 2015), the artist covers the information printed on sheets of newsprint with thread, inviting the viewer to reflect on the veracity of its content. Similarly, embroideries with colored threads create geometric shapes that generate abstract constructions.
Evelyn Politzer works with yarn, wool, and fabric strands, natural materials that, according to her, “have stories to tell.” Most of her pieces are made with sheep’s wool dyed by peasant women from her native Uruguay. The installation Threads of Connection (2021) deals with the interconnection that exists between human beings, which is expressed visually in the woven forms with which the piece is assembled, as well as verbally by including a text by Anaïs Nin embroidered on a canvas that refers to the weaving and sewing as metaphors in a couple’s relationship.
One of the ancient traditions associated with the production of textiles is the use of the loom, and it is precisely this system that Valerie Lustgarten uses to make Quehaceres (Housework, 2017). The piece is the result of the meticulous work she developed to find the right combinations of materials, especially the palm tree print fabric created for this tapestry. At a conceptual level, the intertwining explores the role of women as the pillar of the family and her role in the domestic sphere.
Another craft tradition used by cultures around the world is quilting. In addition to fulfilling a practical function, hand-sewn quilts are associated with a narrative tradition. Liberty Worth uses unconventional and improvised quilting techniques to create swirling shapes inspired by nature, stitched colleges that she turns into abstract but emotionally charged textile paintings. According to the artist, her works are enriched by her travels and the healing processes she experiences, finding “harmony and healing through memory.”
Predominantly using natural fibers, Allison Kotzig’s installations are conceptual in nature, focusing on fertility and the cycle of life-death-rebirth. Her work has an innate sense of mysticism and refers to the oral tradition that speaks about nature, mythological creatures, and the divine character of the female image.
The work Naturaleza Transitoria (Transient Nature, 2019) by Karla Kantorovich is also inspired by nature. In this case, the artist refers not only to the environment but also to the materials that, according to her, “tell stories.” By rescuing discarded fabrics and threads and giving them new life in her installations, the artist alludes to the scars of the past but also to healing and the illusion of a better future.
The artists included in this exhibition subvert expectations through the skill of their manual work, the masterful use of materials, and the conceptual strength of the messages and stories they convey. Each of them stands out and actively participates in a historical moment in which those who work with textiles, fibers, and other materials and techniques traditionally associated with handicrafts, break down barriers and consolidate themselves in the field of contemporary art.
Francine Birbragher-Rozencwaig is an art historian, independent curator, and art critic. She received a Master's in art history and a Ph.D. in Latin American history from the University of Miami. She is a founding and contributing editor of ArtNexus magazine. Since 1989, she has written about modern and contemporary art for specialized magazines, newspapers, artists' monographs, and exhibition catalogs. She specializes in Latin American and Caribbean art, with an emphasis on young emerging artists and pioneering women artists from the 20th century, such as Myra Landau, María Teresa Hincapié, and María Thereza Negreiros. She is the author of the book Essays on 20th Century Latin American Art (Routledge, 2022). From 2008 to 2015, she worked as an adjunct curator at The Patricia and Phillip Frost Art Museum, Florida International University, Miami, Florida. As an independent curator, she has organized over one hundred exhibitions in the United States and Latin America. She co-curated with Juan Canela the XXIII Bienal de Arte Paiz in Guatemala in 2023. She is a former founding board member of the Museum of Contemporary Art, North Miami (MOCA), and Founding Arts Broward. She currently serves on the Advisory Board of the Friends of the Uffizi Gallery, Florence, Italy, and the Board of Directors of The John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art Foundation, Sarasota, Florida. She belongs to several professional organizations, including the International Association of Art Critics (AICA), the College Art Association (CAA), the Association for Latin American Art (ALAA), and Art Table.
