Joan Wall was born in Württemberg, Germany, in 1923 and from a young age she became interested in the art of tapestry, participating in workshops not only to create her own tapestries but also to teach other artists the mysteries of this technique. In the 1970s, she settled in Buenos Aires to continue working with threads and passing on her knowledge in her own workshop until her death, in 2010. Although working with threads and wool was considered a feminine task until very recently, Joan overcame all prejudices to leave behind a body of work that is fascinating both for its combination of techniques and materials.

 

Untitled, by Joan Wall

Tapestry with natural fibers

 

Untitled, by Joan Wall

Tapestry with natural fibers

 

Apparently, she created alone, combining and weaving surrounded by fibers in all shades of earth tones. Her work emerges with a sense of indigenous culture, but at the same time, it appears futuristic, as if she favors our surroundings to nature.

Despite being a tireless worker and creating numerous pieces, she never received the recognition she deserved, until now, when she was a star at the last ArteBA.

The Gardener, by Liliana Porter (2012)

Installation: broken porcelain plates, metal figurine, and various objects.

If there's one image that has represented the Argentine artist Liliana Porter since the 1970s, it's the "spill" (literally) or the accident. The objects in her installations are scattered or swirling, as if caught in a tornado. The chaos we see in The Gardener makes us think of collapse, and particularly the collapse of today's society. The small-scale figure is engaged in a titanic task: organizing this garden in which the flowers are painted on shattered porcelain. The figure is trapped in excessive chaos, yet it sweeps, organizes, and cleans up the "mess" to achieve a new normal that will never be the same as before.

Resilience, care, reconstruction: examples for our own lives, our own history, mending what has been destroyed.

Interpreting today's world with an image is increasingly complex for a photographer, due to the visual overload in which we are immersed. However, we can be in for a surprise when the unexpected crosses our path: unsuspecting visitors.

The threads of her unwoven fabrics bear the reverse of the photographed image: before our eyes, we see fragments of lines that are part of an image frozen by the artist's camera. Now, if a current of air passes through these threads, they can experience a certain movement (construction - deconstruction).