When the Henie Onstad Art Center showed the Polish late modernist Magdalena Abakanowicz in 1977, it made an indelible impression on the Norwegian art public. We can see her influence as a broad current in Norwegian textile art, from Brit Fuglevaag Warsinski’s hemp vulva in the seventies to Hanne Friis’ enormous denim sculpture in 2014. Almost fifty years after the influential exhibition, Abakanowicz is now shown again at Høvikodden. I don’t think she will do less luck this time. About Magdalena Abakanowicz Photo: AP Born in 1930 in Warsaw. Died in 2017, aged 86. Grew up in a 17th-century house in the small town of Falenty outside Warsaw. The mother came from an old Polish noble family, and the father belonged to the ethnic group Libka Tartars. The childhood home was surrounded by beautiful, ancient forest. During the Second World War, the family became an active part of the resistance, and also in the post-war period they had to seek shelter from the communists because they belonged to the aristocracy. Graduated from the Academy of Arts in Warsaw. Had her artistic breakthrough during the prestigious São Paulo Biennale in 1956, where she won gold. Also made a mark during the first international weaving biennale in Lausanne six years later. Abakanowicz was hired as a professor at the Academy of Arts in Poznań, where she worked until 1990. In 2020, it changed its name to Magdalena Abakanowicz University of Arts. Exhibited several times in Norway in the 60s and 70s. This year’s exhibition is the first solo exhibition in this country since 1977. Overwhelming experience Because it really is a completely overwhelming experience to go down into the high, open hall in the art centre, which for once almost seems small, diminished by the enormous textile sculptures that hang from the roof. The first thing that meets us here is Abakanowicz’s most famous work: the great “Abakans”. These three-dimensional textile expressions, which she named after herself, are woven from coarse fibres, such as wool, hemp, sisal and rough rope. The Abakans earned the Polish artist the role of one of the leading figures of his time in the 60s and 70s. “Abakan Yellow” (1967) “Situation Variable II” (1971) “Brown Coat” (1968) But as I stand and stare in complete awe at this powerful textile scenography, I think that she has not received nearly as much attention as she actually deserves. Desire to touch the works Previously I have only seen these sculptures individually, and it really is something completely different. What we can experience at Høvikodden is how the powerful fabric installations play off each other through form, color and material, and create different spatial experiences. It is so sensual and tactile that I have to pull myself together violently not to touch the works. SENSUAL: The textile sculptures play off each other through colour, shape and material. They transform the room and together form a powerful and sensuous scenography.POWERFUL TEXTILES: The sculptures are created from textiles, but rarely characterized by the soft and supple quality usually associated with textiles and stitching. Strong hemp fibers and rough ropes create the expression, and the seams are often like scars or grooves in the surface. FROM CARPET TO SCULPTURE: The exhibition at Høvikodden shows how her expression develops from carpets on the wall to sculptures in the room. MEMORIES OF BODY PARTS: Abakanowicz also has sculptures that reflect on different body parts such as the skull or the hand. DOUBLENESS: In this sculpture, she has explored an abstract form in a hemp material that is also reminiscent of a clasped hand. This duality between the pure form and nature or body references runs through her artistry like a refrain. The large, woven forms do not imitate anything specific, but are nevertheless so initiating and rich in associations. I think of heavy clothes, of draperies behind which something hides. They also carry a wealth of possible natural associations: A golden oval resembles a huge autumn leaf that the wind will soon tear from the tree. A dark brown shape with deep folds, makes me think of a large hollow tree. Holes, scars and wounds form in the coarse fibers. In one sculpture, the surface is hard as stone, while in another, soft folds form and something resembling hair, fur, or perhaps withered grass grows. CAN’T TOUCH THIS: Abakanowicz’s works are so sensual and immediate that I have to force myself not to touch them. Photo: Christian Tunge / Henie Onstad Art Center Many sculptures also have oval openings that are surrounded by fleshy folds, which give clear associations to the female genitalia. For example, in “Abakan Orange” from 1971, where a narrow orange-coloured snake shape from the ceiling stretches down towards a vulva-like gaping crack in a circular carpet lying on the floor. It is similar to a kind of pollination or fertilization. It is wonderfully hideous and beautiful at the same time. AUTUMN LEAVES OR VULVA: The works are so rich in associations. Is “Abakan Orange” nature or body, a golden autumn leaf or a stylized vulva? Photo: Christian Tunge / Henie Onstad Art Center No prior knowledge required The same applies to the work “Desdemona” from 1965, where the various colors and textures intertwine and overlap almost as in a collage. In some works, holes and lasers are also part of the artistic expression. Abakanowicz’s sculptures are characterized by a longing for freedom, in many ways they reflect the conflicts that unfolded in Poland in the artist’s own time. First the great resistance struggle during the Second World War, and then the battle against communism’s restriction of artistic freedom. But even more strongly than all this, Abakanowicz’s project expresses something timeless that goes beyond language. They carry within them a powerful primeval quality. SHOWS THE DEVELOPMENT: The exhibition goes backwards through Abakanowicz’s artistry back to the more traditional weavings from early in his career. Here we see (from left) “Helena” and “Desdemona”, where she creates a dynamic interweaving of different surfaces and denominations. Photo: Christian Tunge / Henie Onstad Kunstsenter I only have my own art historian’s eye to look at. But standing in the exhibition, I think that this must be a type of aesthetic experience that is so sensual and immediate that what you know or don’t know about art doesn’t matter. These are works that speak directly to the body and to the emotions, and I am sure that they have the potential to arouse as much in a child as in an old art professor. I believe and hope this will be a great audience success throughout the winter! news reviewer Photo: Christian Tunge / Henie Onstad Art Center Title: “Tangles of thread and rope” Artist: Magdalena Abakanowicz Curators: Caroline Ugelstad, Ann Coxon, Mary Jane Jacob Place: Henie Onstad Art Center, Bærum Time: 27.10.2023–25.02.2024 Estimated time spent: 30–60 minutes Dagsrevyen made the trip to Høvikodden when Abakanowicz exhibited in Norway in 1977.
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“Tangles of thread and rope” by Magdalena Abakanowicz at Henie Onstad Art Center – Reviews and recommendations
