June 4 - July 2, 2022
From Foltz Fine Art:
“Earlier this year, contemporary Houston artist Emma Balder was generously awarded a $15,000 Support for Artists and Creative Individuals grant from the Houston Arts Alliance. With this support from the City of Houston, she has been developing a large-scale collaborative installation. The work is based off of her sculptural paintings and investigates our relationship with textiles. This March, she hosted two collaborative sessions with local Houstonians (artists and art lovers, musicians, clergy, engineers, teachers, and students) who contributed their personal textiles into the piece. Participants shared touching stories about their textiles and helped sew them into the work. The vulnerability and sense of community in sharing this space was profound. Emma’s final project will be on display in a culminating exhibition – Beyond the Surface – at Foltz Fine Art in Houston, on view June 4 – July 2, 2022.
Show Statement
Beyond the Surface is an exhibition which considers the subliminal meaning behind every-day soft materials. With textiles’ proximity and necessity in daily life, relationships to this material provide key insights about humanity. How we treat textiles is indicative of the way we treat other humans, even ourselves. What do these relationships reveal? What truths are textiles masking underneath? Does the everyday exchange with textiles reflect the depth of connection between human beings?
Allowing abstraction to be a voice for textured stories, the project examines what lies Beyond the Surface of everyday textiles. The exhibition aims for connections between stories to emerge, transforming relationship with material, self, and others. Demonstrating intention and care for the textiles in our lives, Beyond the Surface seeks to uncover a deeper appreciation for the threads which connect us all. “
Reception: June 4, 2022 | 6–8 pm
2143 Westheimer Road
Houston, 77098 TX
(713) 521-7500
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