Curated by Kimberly Reinagel

Zhen Guo, Leila Seyedzadeh, Alexandria Deters, Mariana Gabribay Raeke, Christina Wong, Victoria Udondian, Kimberly Reinagel, Eozen Agopian and Lisa Kellner

October 19 – 31, 2019

WhiteBox Harlem is thrilled to present Subversive Stitch, a group exhibition featuring female contemporary artists that work in textiles. Curated by Kimberly Reinagel, artists presented in this show include Zhen Guo, Leila Seyedzadeh, Alexandria Deters, Mariana Gabribay Raeke, Christina Wong, Victoria Udondian, Kimberly Reinagel, Eozen Agopian and Lisa Kellner. This exhibition will look at the societal reassignment of textile in the art market. Throughout history, textiles have been heavily considered a “feminine” medium. Fabrics, fashion, embroidery and tapestry all connote a feminine background, and have notoriously not been received with much gravity. Subversive Stitch is here to prove that the textile medium carries just as much clout and strength in the art world at large as any other male-dominated medium.

Subversive Stitch is a homage to feminist writer Rozsika Parker and her book “The Subversive Stitch: Embroidery and the Making of the Feminine”. In her book, Parker looks into the art of embroidery and how the craft was elevated from a private female domesticity into the fine arts, a movement which fostered the increasing growth of the craft movement in the art world. To this day, embroidery is still heavily considered a feminine medium but one that is no less subversive, innovative and political than any other. Subversive Stitch brings together female artists from a range of cultural backgrounds who work in textile mediums in a display of artistic strength, The artists tackle the themes of culture, identity, displacement, feminism, economics and a responsibility to the truth of material through their work. This group of artists represent diversity and what textile means as it is carried through the atmosphere of their respective backgrounds. China, Iran, Nigeria, Greece, United States, Thailand and Mexico will all share a unique yet collaborate voice through textiles in this exhibit. Every single thread in this space holds within it a deeper story.

During this exhibition, funds will be collected on a donation basis, and a portion of all artwork sales will go to support the programming of the Lower Eastside Girls Club. A New York based organization that provides a safe haven, as well as programs in the arts, sciences, leadership, entrepreneurship and wellness for middle and high school aged girls. The Lowereast Side Girls Club aims to break the cycle of poverty by training the next generation of ethical, entrepreneurial and environmental female leaders.