Fabrics of Nature

The fourth edition of The Image Generator takes place at Kunsthal Extra City’s new location, a former Dominican monastery in the heart of Antwerp. Many of the installations, performances and interventions will relate directly to their current exhibition Radically Naive / Naively Radical, but some of the dynamics of this four-day happening will also lead to something more lasting, in the form of an exhibition.

Fabrics of Nature is a thematic exhibition dealing with our (in)ability to relate to nature. Rather than experiencing nature as something we are part of, we cope with it. Western society explicitly distinguishes itself from it, and now the whole world faces the consequences of this attitude. For some of the artists in this exhibition, this results in a nostalgic longing. Others turn to a (utopian) post-industrialist world where nothing new is produced, and all is recycled. In any case, dystopian collapse is always near.

Surprisingly it is the tactile quality of surfaces that takes centre stage. Fabrics, plants, plaster and textiles become skin and invite you to engage or touch. As if they are begging to be noticed and caressed. The works of the seven artists in this exhibition are not only housed in the former Dominican chapel but have found their way organically through the hallway and into the monastery garden, eventually turning towards the sky as their last resort.

Participating artists: Luca Dal Vignale, Aymeric Ebrard, Agnese Forlani & Jackson Shallcross-Platt, Feng Li, Gwendoline Robin, Luca Vanello, Leon Vranken – Curator: Joachim Naudts – Presentation: Extra City

You can find the full programme here.