Drawn from the Collection: Part of the Fabric Drawn from the Collection: Part of the Fabric October 7, 1998 - January 17, 1999 F or the visually hungry on culture’s path, or, for that matter, those lost in their own closets, it is difficult to avoid textiles. Theirs is a persistent capacity -to seduce us, to engage us in mystery, to clothe our gender, to physically and intimately touch us, to celebrate place and time, to record history and entangle us in the branches of family trees. Textiles make exquisite the most simple functions of daily life and make memorable the nec- essarily grand occasion. We find ourselves to be part of the weave of fabric, enmeshed in fictional as well as tactile connections to our real and imagined ancestors and to our artisanal relatives, both recent and ancient. Threads lead us on imagined voyages to live in moments into which we were not born. Awed by the qualities inherent in these fabrics, we idealize their beauty, we empathize with the effort of their creation, and we suffer from our ignorance as to the life of these textiles in their original contexts. Artists who use fiber as their medium have offered up images to artists with paint on their hands for millennia: images of human beings, propositions about the natural world, and an abstract formal language of potent and unrelenting power. The rotating exhibi- tions of Asian textiles in The RISD Museum’s collection offer the opportunity to visit an extraordinarily well stocked and organized attic of collective memory. These textiles are tickets to travel through time and space. Through them we can meditate in a Zen garden, embroider the afternoon away, accept a dinner invitation from a high official, examine a palace paradise, fly with a dragon. The depths, the surfaces, the rhythms, the stories, the colors, the iconography, the implications as source and inspiration all seem unlimited, overwhelming. Ten artists were asked to look, to study, to feel, to respond, to be part of the fabric. They have individually selected works from The RISD Museum’s Asian textile collection and in dialogue with their choices have produced their own artwork. Each artist’s selection and the resulting creation are displayed together in this exhibition. As a teaching method and an adventure, I hope that this show encour- ages every student and every viewer to see the Asian textile collection, decorative arts, and the Museum as an irresistible set of experi- ences upon which to draw. Holly Hughes From all the artists , many thanks to Pam Parmal, former Associate Curator of Costume and Textiles. She has given most generously of her time , advice, and enthusiasm. (ON THE COVER) Holly Hughes American, born 1951 (Assistant Professor, Painting, risd) QUARTET FOR THE overripe, 1 998 (detail) Gouache on stretched paper, 1: 13 3/4 x 10 3/4 in.; 2: 16 in. diam.; 3: 20 x 15 3/4 in.; 4: 1 6 in. diam. Lent by the artist JAPANESE, KIMONO (detail) 20th century. Silk; plain weave, yuzen-dyed ; center back length 70 1/2 in. Gift of Dr. and Mrs. Meyer Saklad 78.124.2 I picked this particular kimono because it was a riot of imagery, a traffic jam, a cacophony set against the inevitable black void. I felt its escapist intent. It described place and mind- set. I could go there effort- lessly. More is more, and as the forms accumulated, so did color-zany, sentimental, lurid, and all the while, somehow sweet. Forms, mutated from the plant world and from cartoonlike Buddhist iconography, col- lapse together under the force of gravity into piles of almost indiscernible fan shapes resting in an atmos- phere of fading light and romance. Local color and the pulse of bulbous, rhyth- mic forms are tangled in a network of linear energy, all charged with the innuendo of narrative. Who could ask for more than the “umbrella of invisibility ? ” Emily Cheng American, born 1953 (risd bfa 1975, Painting) 3 IMPERIAL YELLOW, 1998 Acrylic on Iris Print, 36 x 29 in. Lent by the artist 4 CHINESE, MAN'S COURT ROBE (QIFU) late 19th century. Silk and gold-metallic thread; tapestry trimmed with fur; center back length 56 1/2 in. Gift of Lucy Truman Aldrich 35.390 The RISD Museum owns a variety of beautiful garments and textiles from China. Some are fragile with deli- cate and muted designs, oth- ers are bright, pretty, and feminine. Still others are bold with contrasting colors of graphic interlocking shapes, difficult to make out at first glance. These are the designs I was drawn to. The bizarre images of large moths intermingling with floral designs in a round format were played off against their symbolic con- tent. The compressed group of images within a circle seemed to function emblem- atically on a subtle overall pattern. I wanted to play with the tension between the breaking down and building up of such an emblem, finding, losing, and perhaps finding again the identity of the objects. 2 Donnamaria Bruton American, born 1954 (Assistant Professor, Painting, risd) 1 FALLING LAMP, 1998 Mixed media, 30 x30 m. Lent by the artist 2 PHILIPPINE, BLOUSE 19th century. Pineapple cloth; plain weave with cotton applique; center back length 15 1/2 in. Gift of Mrs. James Comly McCoy 14.414 I transcend the human experience when I view something truly lovely. I selected this Philippine embroidered blouse because of its ephemeral qualities. The experience of looking at an object and seeing through it at the same time appeals to what I under- stand about life and eternity. I was impressed with how little it needed to physically sustain itself: a delicate line defining its pattern and a transparent fabric to shape its purpose. 4 Dennis Congdon American, born 1953 (risd bfa 1975, Painting; Professor, Painting, risd) 5 LITTLE REST, 1 998 Oil on canvas, 62 1/4 x 64 1/4 in. Lent by the artist 6 JAPANESE, STENCIL (detail) 19th century. Mulberry paper and persimmon tannin; hand carved; 11 7/8 x 16 1/2. in. Gift of Mrs. Gustav Radeke 07.020 7 JAPANESE, STENCIL (detail) 19th century. Mulberry paper and persimmon tannin; hand carved; 9 7/8 x 16 3/4 in. Gift of Mrs. Gustav Radeke 07.062 Some years ago the composer Morton Feldman was looking at paintings in my studio. He turned and said, “You re too worried about ‘Great Art and the Masters.’” I asked him what he did about Beethoven. He said, “Nothing. He’s like a tree... just there like nature. You don’t have to do any- thing. ” This was an impor- tant moment for me. A way was suggested to hold the old art both more reverently and more open to use. I have been using templates in the studio for several years and was immediately drawn to the Japanese mulberry- paper stencils in the Asian textile collection. These are in some sense an artist’s own objects. They take me closest to the artist’s hands and his synthetic process as his piece of work grows. Not meant to be seen, they point our atten- tion away from themselves. One imagines what their use might produce. They imply an invisible other as a shad- ow pairs with an occluding body. The two I have chosen to work with are brilliant examples. I have purposely delayed delving into their context and history and look forward to that study, but first I want to enjoy a long, unfettered look. Greg Drasler American, born 1952 8 BATS & BUNNIES, 1998 Oil on canvas, 58 x52 m. Lent by the artist 9 JAPANESE, TEXTILE FRAGMENT (detail) 19th century. Silk; satin; 8 1/2 x 5 in. Gift of Mrs. Gustav Radeke 08.120 1 0 JAPANESE, TEXTILE FRAGMENT (detail) 19th century. Silk; plain weave with supplementary continuous patterning wefts; 61/4x8 1/4 in. Gift of Mrs. Gustav Radeke 08.156.642 I admit that I arrived at the Museum thinking about pat- terns and iconography. This preoccupation expands on my paintings of interiors. In an effort to inscribe my depictions of rooms with readable iconographic signs, I began to invent my own wallpaper patterns. I think Mortie would approve. John Hatfield American, born 1964 1 1 PEONY AND FROG PAJAMAS, 1998 Ink on paper, Peony Pajamas: 56x45 in.; Frog Pajamas: 62 x 60 in. Courtesy of Judy Ann Goldman Fine Art, Boston 12 CHINESE, WOMAN'S COAT 19th century. Silk; satin embroidered with silk and metallic thread; center back length 42 5/8 in. Gift of Lucy Truman Aldrich 35.404 Ruby-red pomegranates, golden-winged butterflies, pink plump gourds, crimson and blue peonies, green- stemmed lilies, and red polka-dotted toads. Oh my! What could these mean f In the margins of a coat sleeve I discovered a frenzy of embroidered silk images. The longer I looked, the more ecstatic everything seemed. In this small space, nature was engaged in an intricate and choreographed orgy. For me, the sleeve was a tapestry of mystery, filled with what I learned were Chinese symbols for sex and love, virility and fertility, long life and happiness in marriage. These are the potent and private things in life that fascinate me as an artist. 1 1 1 2 Between the years 19 So and 1981, I lived in Japan as a graduate student studying language and culture. Through my host family I was given introduction and access to brocade merchants, antique dealers, and Kabuki theater. The weekly temple sales were flea markets where piles of used kimono were to be purchased for next to nothing. I sent home many boxes of them. To my eyes the peculiarity of image combinations, exquisite detail, and unfamiliar color combinations represented a microcosm of philosophy, aesthetics, and everyday life. When I saw the pattern of bats depicted in the fragment from the Museum’s collec- tion, I was mesmerized. I knew that the image of the bat did not have the same connotation in Japan as in Western culture. If anything, from my experience, it repre- sented a time of day rather that a dark messenger of haunting. I found these mul- tiple meanings in nature attractive and contagious. Patterns of swimming rab- bits and what I understood to be a lightning pattern simultaneously represented an aesthetic observation of nature and cataclysm. Covering an interior space with an arrangement of these patterns gives enough room to try on the effect like a garment with the pattern on the inside. 1 0 9 I :f a£j£ H Mary Jones American, born 1953 1 3 DARSHANA, 1 998 Oil on canvas, 30 x 26 in. Lent by the artist 1 4 INDIAN, PROBABLY GUJARAT, SARI (detail) late i9th-early 20th century. Silk; plain weave, supplementary discontinuous and continuous patterning wefts; 169 x 40 3/4 in. Bequest of Lucy Truman Aldrich 55.317 I began this project with two preconceived ideas: I wanted to make a stencil from the textile to use in my painting, and I wanted it to be from India, the place I would most like to go. Viewing the Museum’s collection, however, opened a world of other possibili- ties. The Japanese textiles were dazzling. I particularly remember a piece with large- scale dragons and clouds so bold, animated, and magnifi- cent that I thought, e( what could possibly be better ? ” This posed another prob- lem-I could only imagine copying the pattern in awe. That led me to my choice from India, a sari rich in color and pattern but simple enough for interaction. The weaving became a metaphor for exchange. I ended up not copying the pattern for a stencil after all. Pam Longobardi American, born 1958 17 TWO LOVERS SEEKING COVER (UNDER THE BEARD OF INVISIBILITY), 1 998 Copper over wood with patinas, oil, enamel, and gold, 30 x 30 in. Lent by the artist 1 8 J APAN ESE, OBI FRAGMENT (detail) first half 20th century. Silk; jacquard, 39 x 14 in. Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Winthrop W. Aldrich 58.184.5 I use picture fragments in my work to juxtapose the materials with which I work. The copper and patinas act as a stand-in for raw nature... chemically interac- tive recordings of tempera- ture, humidity, and time. The picture fragments act as Betsy Kaufman American, born 1957 (risd bfa 1980, Printmaking) 1 5 TWO UNTITLED WORKS, 1998 Watercolor and pencil on paper, 27 x 20 in. Lent by the artist 16 ISSEY MIYAKE AND YASUMASA MORIMURA, PLEATS PLEASE GUEST ARTIST SERIES, NO. 1 , 1997 Japanese, born 1935, and Japanese, 20th century. Polyester; digital printed and pleated; center back length 53 3/4 in. Gift of Issey Miyake 1997.25 I chose the Issey Miyake dress not so much for its inspiration , hut as a creation with which I felt an aesthetic kinship. My work addresses the issues of form and color as narrative, and the Miyake dress is a wonderful dialogue of similar elements within a completely different context. By juxtaposing these two diverse applications, I am setting up a visual dialogue that extends the narrative of the Miyake dress. cultural markers, points of fixture amidst the incomprehensible flow of wild nature. I chose this fragment because the elements - theater props - reminded me of linear constructions that I draw as representations of the ego. I extracted two parts and upon inverting them, they seemed to repre- sent the male and female. I placed these two forms in anticipation of sex, and one mask’s beard became a small flame. The lovers are shield- ed by a fountain from the onlooking masks. Andrew Raftery American, born 1962 (Assistant Professsor, Printmaking, risd) 1 9 PAMELA PARMAL EXAMINING A KASHMIR SHAWL IN THE TEXTILE STUDY ROOM OF THE RISD MUSEUM, 1998 Etching and engraving, 12 1/2 x 91/2 in. Lent by the artist 20 INDIAN, KASHMIR, SHAWL (detail) early 19th century. Wool; twill tapestry; 125 x 50 1/4 in. Bequest of Lucy Truman Aldrich 55.330 “Fanny, William must not forget my shawl, if he goes to the East Indies ; and I shall give him a commission for anything else that is worth having . I wish he may go to the East Indies, that I may have my shawl. I think I will have two shawls, Fanny.” Lady Bertram, in Jane Austen, Mansfield Park , 1814. I confess that my initial interest in Kashmir shawls came from a desire to be transported to the drawing room of Lady Bertram, the salons of the sitters of David and Ingres, and even the ele- gant front parlors of Benefit Street in the Federal Period. It fascinated me that these unique textiles-products of the convergence of superfine materials, meticulous tapes- try technique, and a range of elegant decorative motifs- could become such a promi- nent part of a visual world so far from where they were created. The RISD M useum As I studied this particular shawl, I realized that its beauty is embodied in aes- thetic contradiction: it is infinitely elaborate, but it ultimately leaves an impres- sion of chaste austerity. The lushly blooming floral 20 imagery is consumed by the rigorous geometry imposed by the weaver. The interlocking mark language of etching and engraving is the ideal analogy for the twill tapes- try technique of the shawl. The print shows the shawl as it is conserved, studied, and appreciated in our historical period. Like Lady Bertram, Lucy Truman Aldrich desired an Indian shawl. She went to India to purchase this one, not to adorn her shoulders but to form part of a collec- tion that provides inspira- tion to artists in all media.