Zeche Westerholt, Ruhr Valley, Germany
RUBUG 2022
https://www.rubug.de/kuenstler/?_sf_s=theresa
A conceptual installation of knitted fabrics in the space of the light hall at mine Westerholt. The space is a space of transit, where the miners clocked in, went into the mine and returned to daylight. The textiles contain text about my research on the experience of the miners. I used keywords of their daily workflow to express the processes they went through. A poem and critical information about mining is asking on how we want to live on this planet.
A poem for the miners:
‘When I shine for you, the light goes out. You invite me. I see your eyes, mirrored gaze. A room in the depths. The darkness screams - the air is all black! The walls are stone. Hidden in the earth - I am with you. You carry me down. I shine for you, but if I get lost, you lose yourself too. Found by friends. I come back to the light. And back again. The hall of light.‘
The knitting with the text elements has colour effects and openings that stretch open when installed in the space. The colours are the three main colours mixed with black, which stands symbolically for the coal.
The knitting on the turnable information boards create holographic effects. They are interactive objects and remind on a circus a surreal experience of going back into the past and the reality of the miners.
Pictures of exhibition, details and creative process by Susan Fankhänel, Cindy & me. The fabrics were produced on a circular transfer knitting machine in collaboration with Terrot GmbH.