Katinka Bock & Sheila Hicks. Various Others 2024. In Kollaboration mit Meyer Riegger

In the organizer's words:

seem to be. However, her works, always made of soft materials such as wool, linen or silk, enter into a direct dialog with the architecture as such, and less with the social and historical references on which they are based, as is the case with Bock. Nevertheless, Hick's works are also dependent on the conditions and forces in the room - above all on gravity. The cords or fabric nets in her works often hang vertically from the ceiling or from their supports and then fold luxuriantly over one another on the floor, as in the work "not yet titled" (2024).
Although she turned to textile art early on, painting continues to manifest itself as an artistic basis in Hicks' works to this day. "Untitled" (2024) is based on the tradition of abstract painting. Hicks achieves subtle, oscillating color effects by combining different colored linen cords. In contrast to painting, however, the image carrier and color are not separate, but form a unit. Color plays a role for Hicks as it does for Bock. But while it takes Bock some effort, as she herself says, to add a new color to her artistic cosmos - so far she has primarily used blue, and the yellow that can be seen in the exhibition is a new addition - Hicks always combines new colors and brings the differently colored cords, such as "in Meeting on the staircase 1 and 2" (2023), directly into contact with each other. Together they create an image of opulence and abundance.

While the basis for Hicks' works is the addition of something - a color, a string - limiting forms the basis for Bock's works. In dialog, these artistic approaches become more comprehensible. Even if they do so in different ways: They are both sensitive observers of us humans, our rituals and the contexts in which we move on a daily basis. (Alicja Schindler)

[1] Arthur C. Danto: "Weaving as Metaphor and Model for Political Thought", in: Nina Stritzler-Levine (ed.): Sheila Hicks. Weaving as Metaphor, pp. 22-36.