Performing Textiles is the title of a suite of recent video works by Thai-Australian artist Kawita Vatanajyankur, in which the artist powerfully critiques the many challenges faced by Thai women (and more broadly Asian migrant women) in relation to the backbreaking physical manual labour processes of contemporary manufacturing industries. Mosman Art Gallery is proud to exhibit two artworks from this series including The Spinning Wheel, 2018 and the world premiere of the artwork Knit, 2019. The artist’s durational performative processes and hyper-coloured compositions create images that are captivating and seductive yet disquieting. They are a celebration of women’s strength, endurance and resilience in the face of burden. Using her own body in a series of machine-like scenarios, the artist highlights the vulnerabilities of the human body and its spirit, provoking questions surrounding consumption, labour, feminism and social justice.

Kawita Vatanajyankur is represented by Nova Contemporary (Bangkok), Clear Edition & Gallery and Alamak! Project (Tokyo) and Antidote Organisation (Australia).

Image:  Kawita Vatanajyankur, Knit (still), 2019, single channel video, 25.53 mins

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