The group exhibition shows twelve contemporary artistic perspectives on the medium of textiles. The focus is on collective practices of production and a joint, experimental discovery of textile techniques against the backdrop of an ecologically and socially sustainable, as well as innovative, handling of textiles and fashion.
In the run-up to the exhibition, individual artists used the ESCHE Lab — the newly established workshop — as well as the museum’s inventory of materials and machinery, and worked on experiments and prototypes in cooperation with the Saxon Textile Research Institute e. V. (STFI) Chemnitz. The works shown reflect the history, meaning and aesthetics of textiles and enter into a dialogue with the permanent exhibition in terms of content and space.
The accompanying program negotiates topics such as the circular economy, local resources and sustainable production methods, representing a counterpoint to the global fast fashion industry and its ecological and social effects. Workshops and discussions offer interactive insights into the textile industry and encourage sustainable consumption and social responsibility.
FABRIC VISIONS is an invitation to discover the complexity and potential of textiles as a medium and offers space for reflection and discussion in the field of art, craft, technology and sustainability.
OPENING:
Sunday, 13.04.2025, 3 - 6 pm @ Esche-Museum, Limbach-Oberfrohna (DE)
PANEL TALK & CLOTHING SWAP:
Friday, 20.06.2025, 7 pm @ Weltecho, Chemnitz (DE)
'Globale Probleme und Herausforderungen brauchen lokale Lösungen und Initiativen. Kann Mode fair und nachhaltig sein?' [Global problems and challenges need local answers and initiatives. Can Fashion be fair and sustainable?] with Henriette Helmstedt (tailor & Fashion Revolution Chemnitz), moderated by Nina Lorenzen (Fashion Changers).
WORKSHOPS:
Saturday, 23.08.2025, 10 am - 1 pm & 3 pm - 6 pm @ Esche-Museum, Limbach-Oberfrohna (DE) during LOOP-Festival
'Die Sockendebatte – ein DIY Workshop für alle' [The Sock Debate – a DIY workshop for all]:
In 2024, a generational debate unfolded on social media concerning the length of socks: invisible sneaker ones were banished as millennial fashion, and instead, socks were supposed to rise to new heights again. Alongside the clean look of tennis socks, ornamental details were no longer considered a crime, and ruffles, embroidery, glitter, and colour once again could be seen flashing from shoes. Fashion is a constant process of evaluation and devaluation, but also of making use of and appreciation.
In this workshop, we will discuss fashion phenomena with seriousness and 'Sockenschuss' [eccentricity] and take a look at global and local textile history. During this workshop, we will retrieve from the storage rooms the knitting samples created locally in the exhibition spaces of the textile museum and use them to create our own experimental socks and slippers using various techniques.
From privilege and status symbol to disposable product, as functional footwear or an accessory of class consciousness and social distinction, we will analyse and deconstruct the sock and create artistic interpretations. The results can then be presented, given as gifts to your loved ones, or worn around the other events of the LOOP Festival.
FABRIC VISIONS Workshop/Participatory Making, 2025
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Workshop 'Die Sockendebatte – ein DIY Workshop für alle' [The Sock Debate – a DIY workshop for all] during LOOP Festival at Esche-Museum, Limbach-Oberfrohna (DE). Photographs ©Aïcha Abbadi.
Panel Talk and Clothing Swap at Weltecho, Chemnitz (DE). Photography ©Jan Felber.
Silkscreen printed exhibition catalogue, German & English. Designed and printed by Christian Doege, with illustrations by Julia Kluge, ed.500, available at the museum, 10,00 € / ISBN: 978-3-00-082391-6
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Participatory workshops during the group exhibition
FABRIC VISIONS
13/04 — 09/11/2025
with Aïcha Abbadi, Svenja Bremen, Mascha Fehse & Valentina Karga, Wilhelm Frederking, Zoe Köbrunner, Caroline Kryzecki, Sofía Magdits Espinoza, Klara Meinhardt, Simone Post, Lars Preisser, Henrike Schmitz, Ida Westh-Hansen
Curated by Hannah Beck-Mannagetta & Klara Meinhardt
Esche Museum Limbach-Oberfrohna during Chemnitz European Capital of Culture 2025
