***VALUE***
March 25, 2009 by swin
***VALUE***
The 1st exhibition in a series of 12 informal monthly exhibitions looking at strategies of environmentally friendly textile and fashion design.
26th of March to the 29th May
Wednesday to Saturday 12 noon to 6pm
Unit 1:10 OXO Tower Wharf, Bargehouse Street, London SE1 9PH
We have created a space at the back of the shop called ’The back of the shop gallery.’
Starting on the last Thursday of every month with drinks from 5 to 7, will be a different exhibition focussing on environmental themes within textiles.
This month’s exhibition will be called VALUE.
On show during VALUE will be pieces where the reason that they were made, in terms of time and expertise, bears little resemblance to the amount of money they cost to make per hour that could be legally paid in the UK today.
Pieces in VALUE conform to different environmentally important concepts including:
slow design
Loved design
Custodianship of skills
Virtuosity and artistry
Local expertise
Skills which have been handed down over generations.
Fair trade.
What are the implications for diversity and options to make fine handwork in the UK and make a living, for preserving those skills for their own sake, for giving skilled workers a fair wage? Why are we more interested in the end product than in the process which made it?
What pleasure and value is there in being allowed to make something oneself?
If the Peruvian knitters have no money but can knit, and if we have money but no time for the reverie and enjoyment of making textiles, or to make things which involve handwork, who is impoverished by the system?
But what is REALLY happening in the lives of the 2 people at either end of the transaction? The person who made it, and the person who bought it.
What value does the money paid have to each person, and what value does the object exchanged have to each person.
The pieces in this show have been chosen because of the integrity of their inception, construction and relationship to the lives of the people who made them. But, they will also, importantly, being because they are beautiful.
We thoroughly look forward to seeing you at VALUE!
