The 8th international Kaunas Biennial TEXTILE 11:  REWIND (15 09 2011 – 31 12 2011) will be based on the concept of repeated time / retold story. Repetition (REWIND) is understood in the context of the exhibition as a re-coding of events, while coming back to the beginning or the origins. The biennial will return to the historical practices and archetype connotations of textile by reconceptualising and postproducing them in the context of contemporary art and various media practices. 
Kaunas Biennial TEXTILE 11 will analyse the intertwining of the flow of time and the changing concept of art by (re)telling a story(ies) through the exhibitions based on reflecyions of the PAST, PRESENT and FUTURE:
THE PAST: a reinterpretation of the concept of textile as formed by the history of art (exhibition REWIND HISTORY);
THE PRESENT: artists’ personal stories are actualised through textile connotations (exhibition REWIND PERSONAL STORY);
THE FUTURE: scientific (smart and high-tech textile) and artistic experiments (exhibition REWIND INTO THE FUTURE).

REWIND HISTORY

The structure of this exhibition will use the historical principle of sketching the “great masters” and the manufacture of a work of textile, only in a new context. Curator dr. R. Andriušytė-Žukienė will select works by famous Lithuanian artists of the last decade that have turned into icons of contemporary Lithuanian art; following them, tapisseries will be created by using the possibilities offered by computerised weaving looms. The collaboration among the curator, the artist, the technical/programme operator and factory staff reinterpreted / textualised in an essentially new way, but based on a historically established model, will become a discursive version of the history of contemporary Lithuanian art and a platform for informal and non-traditional acquaintance with the Lithuanian art context. The exhibition will be accompanied by special educational programmes.

REWIND PERSONAL STORY

This is a competition-based exhibition inviting artists from all over the world working in different media to present their works related to their personal story. In the exhibition, textile is seen from a new point of view: as a connotation, a hint and a conceptual mediator of experience. The narrative aspect is very important in the exhibition: every group of works presented by an artist will reveal and retell an individual story related to the family, the social and socio-cultural context. 
We invite artists to apply with a group of works or an installation project to the selection committee. It should reveal fragments of the artist’s personal story or the plot not through one, but through several textually interacting works. A personal story is a very wide concept. Doubtlessly, it is determined both by the cultural and social reality, in which a personality matures and grows. In the exhibition, the story can be related to: (1) the artist‘s personal experience (2) the destiny of his/her family, relatives and nation, (3) an overheard / read / seen story that influenced artistic decisions, (4) an elaborately and suggestively invented story.

The exhibition will attempt to present as varied stories as possible in order to involve the audience into “the world of stories” as an [interactive] journey through multicultural and multidimensional experiences. Visual stories will reveal not only the contents of a past event, but also the subjective position of those who tell about it (which often becomes the most interesting and meaningful aspect of the work). The chosen means of expression are also part of a personal story: this is a text / language, close to native language; this is a sign of identification and a guarantee of originality.
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REWIND INTO THE FUTURE

Is an experimental exhibition attempting to reveal the most recent advances in high technology and smart textile. The exhibition curated by an international team will present the newest discoveries of science and examples of contemporary art using innovative technologies related to textile. The interactive exhibition and creative laboratories, which will provide many surprises for curious seekers of novelties, will be accompanied by a seminar during which scientists, artists from all over the world and biennial visitors will share their creative ideas and inspirations.
Conditions of participation ...

Application form ...