15–17 September 2023

Karen Modrei and Hazel Mallon
Exhibition and performance: ‘Attempts On Her Kind’
15–17 September 2023

Vernissage: 15 September, 17–21
Opening hours: Saturday–Sunday, 12–18
Performance: Friday 15 September at 19.00 & Sunday 17 September at 15.00
Artist talk: Sunday 17 September at 14.00. The artist talk will be held in English.

Address:
Flat Octopus @ SBG18
Swedenborgsgatan 18
118 48 Stockholm
Pendeltåg: Stockholm Södra station
Tunnelbana: Mariatorget

Curated by Amr Hamid

‘Attempts On Her Kind’ is an installation by textile artists Karen Modrei (DE) and Hazel Mallon (IE). The exhibition’s title is based on Martin Crimp’s 1997 play, ‘Attempts on Her Life’, a piece that consists of 17 different scenarios attempting to characterise a woman named Ann. The fragmented style denies the idea of a fixed narrative and implies that coherent identity is a myth in an age of consumerism, global capitalism, and technological advances.

How is it that we come to know the Other? Can we put a definition on the process of knowing? The installation consists of various ‘stations’ including textile objects, video and sound pieces. During two performances, the space will be activated by the bodies of the artists and their tools.

Within this setting the process of crafting becomes a synonym for a narrative – writing down a story simultaneously to writing a character, creating a product.
Relating to the aspect of ownership and the alignment of person and product dominant in the play, the object becomes capable of giving insights into not only the process, but also into the creators’ minds and intentions. The installation uses the domestic knitting machine as a projection surface for a body that is used; one that is only coming alive when operated by another. By using sound technology the utterances of the domestic tools become voices, leading to emancipation as well as suggesting a non-visual narrative in an hyper-visual reality.

Karen Modrei (b. 1992) is a textile artist based in Munich, Germany. With a background in bespoke tailoring, architecture and textile, she is fascinated by the shapes and functionalities of the environments we construct for our human bodies. With the ongoing shift towards the digital, her curiosity lies at the translation process between physical and virtual as well as the definition of tools and skill sets when facing digital materials.

Hazel Mallon (b. 1989) is a visual and textile artist based in Dublin. Her work is sculptural and the results are often meditative, inquisitive and playful dialogues between colour, material and form. She is drawn to the notion of ‘gesture’ and how materials can communicate a multitude of meanings. She is interested in Irish folklore and traditional practices which infuse ritual and objects with meaning.

intra:knit was founded by two textile artists, Hazel Mallon (IRE) and Karen Modrei (DEGER). Their work seeks to critically re-examine histories outside of dominant narratives, particularly concerning craft processes traditionally seen as feminine or domestic. They are taking a collaborative and experimental approach in considering the nature of women’s labour and the importance of craft processes in a post-industrial era. Focusing on the tool of the domestic knitting machine, they create installations and performance pieces that explore these relations and invite participation in the making and reflecting. Since being founded in 2020 in Stockholm, intra:knit has exhibited, hosted workshops, and performed in Ireland, Germany, and Sweden.

SBG18 is a creative community and working space facilitating a network that helps drive and inspire fellow creatives with their professional and personal projects.