In which direction does the art compass point at crafts? Typically, in the direction of softness and, dare we say it, art that is slightly lesser than your average. White Cube are not only redirecting, but losing the entire compass, showing material based works as hardy, high art, that rests on a bed of ingenuity and concept. This, is Losing the Compass.
The exhibition is split to upstairs and downstairs at White Cube’s Mason’s Yard space, the upstairs offering the transition from craft to art. Set about the walls and floors are a multitude of patchwork quilts, aesthetically no different to your typical patchwork quilt, all their homely glory in tact. But, scratch a little at the surface and these works reveal themselves as the creations of the Gee’s Bend community and the Amish communities in 19th and 20th century America. Though necessary, these intricate works are the product of creative outlet for many women in these communities.
Downstairs, the works switch between a homeliness that is so intense, it becomes a work of art, and canvases that could be understood as work of modernist painting, until you step closer and release their aggressive splashes and tears are in fact the surface manipulation of denim via a big tub of bleach. Sterling Ruby’s works take an aesthetic that is more often associated with Diesel jeans and makes works that are truly strapping.
William Moris and Alighiero e Boetti’s works are shown together, a mishmash of textures, patterns and colours. Wools, stitches, florals and silver shimmers meeting with such a clash that they forget their soft singular exterior. Craft begs to be taken seriously here, and you can’t help but give in.
Losing the Compass is showing at White Cube, Mason’s Yard until
