AIC's 53rd Annual Meeting

Working with contemporary, mixed-media textiles presents unique display challenges. Artworks are frequently created from a wide range of materials and can be extremely heavy, voluminous, and sometimes, self-destructive. Meanwhile, an artist’s vision of how their work is perceived by the world may not entirely align with the stability of the piece itself. 

Artworks at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art include such pieces as Aunty Lovey se Kombuis, 2022 by Igshaan Adams. Created from wood, plastic, glass, bone and shell beads, fabric, cotton twine, silver linked chain, and plastic-coated wire, this massive piece was originally nailed to a wall by the artist at approximately one foot intervals, causing the piece to inherently distort along its upper border. Although the distortion was intentional, the stress along these points posed long-term risks to the plethora of materials used. This was taken into consideration during preparatory and installation phases as a variety of mounting approaches were tested - with the goal of reducing stress and strain, while preserving the artist’s vision. 

Working directly with an artist during an installation can also require swift adaptability. During the installation of We Live in Painting: The Nature of Color in Mesoamerican Art, Porfirio Gutierrez a Latin American artist and activist added yarn sculptures and nopales, prickly pear cactus segments (phylloclades) to his installation list. Before entering the galleries, cactus spines and any cochineal insects were first removed from the phylloclades, which were then strung on hemp and suspended from a prepared rack. Since the artist mentioned that metal accelerated degradation of the cactus segments causing them to rot, the hanging mechanism was inserted with sharpened pencils. 

Installing contemporary textiles often requires collaboration between conservators, collections management teams, preparators, and often, the artists themselves, resulting in exhibitions that aim to achieve the artist’s vision, while preserving the material integrity of the artworks and maintaining gallery spaces.