The SOFT POWER exhibition, curated by Julie Crenn brings together textile works of international artists. This idea results from a desire, that of putting in space the synthesis of a doctoral research conducted by the curator between 2007 and 2012 at the University of Bordeaux.

“Textiles create a break around and through the notions of amateur, art and craft, throwing the words themselves into crisis – akin to a crisis of identity. BRYAN-WILSON, Julia. Fray: art + textile politics. The University of Chicago Press, 2017

[From the deconstruction of masculinities to the clash of classes, through the empowerment of modes of representation or the displacement of ancestral craft practices, artists inject through their threads and fibers their stories, their experiences and their critical steps. Through a generous corpus of artists, an extensive geography and a plurality of textile mediums, three issues both distinct and complementary are explored in the exhibition: History and representation of black bodies, the experience of the exile and the expression of feminist commitments through visual art. ]

Julie Crenn

The Rebirth of the Back Venus, 2010 Tapestry on silk,  135 x 100 cm. ©Billie Zangewa courtesy Collection Leridon

Artists presented: Ghada Amer – Raymonde Arcier – Babi Badalov – Rina Banerjee – Raphael Barontini – Louise Bourgeois – Yto Barrada – Cathryn Boch – Shadi Ghadirian – Leo Chiachio y Daniel Gianonne – Aurélie Ferruel & Florentine Guédon – Jérémy Gobé – Hessie – Suzanne Husky – Kimsooja – Kapwani Kiwanga – Senzeni Marasela – Marie-Claire Messouma Manlanbien – Lucien Murat – Hassan Musa – Sara Ouhaddou – Athi Patra Ruga – Yinka Shonibare – Skall – Joana Vasconcelos – Aurélie William Levaux – Billie Zangewa.