Opening

Of Revealing Scars and Concealing Material - Textile as a language of resilience

6 p.m. Welcome: Dorothee Bienert, director of the municipal galleries Neukölln

Introduction: Daniela Nadwornicek, curator of the exhibition

Traumatic and violent injuries involving severance or tissue loss result in wounds. Wounds on our bodies. Wounds to our souls.

Violence against women is one of the most deeply embedded human rights violations in societies worldwide. It remains an obstacle to the realisation of equality, peace, and women’s rights. Physical and psychological violence characterise the everyday lives of women from all walks of life. It is still tolerated, ignored, and exploited — even here in Neukölln, Berlin.

Serious injuries require stitches — they heal very slowly without support; scars are the visible traces of these healed wounds.

With visible stitches, the artists in this exhibition reveal their personal scars and offer insights into strategies for self-preservation and healing. Sutures, visible traces in tissue, represent the process of artistic work and the wound healing that accompanies it. The stories of these women become visible — stories that had been concealed behind material, hidden by material. Hand-sewn textile works testify to resilience and are a collective protest against invisibility, oppression, and violence.