VARious Things

November 28, 2009

FOOD FOR THE SOUL [CHRISTMAS]

FOOD FOR THE SOUL

[CHRISTMAS]

Felt exhibition
An exhibition of functional felt objects – as a collection of traces of traditional meanings in this modern world of globalization.
At first glance it is just a simple game of eight felt makers - Daiva Morozova, Viltė Kazlauskaitė, Ramunė Toleikytė, Inga Samušienė, Donata Dumčiuvienė, Aurelija Masiulionytė, Jurgita Migonienė, and Vaida Petreikienė. Felters, playing with felt surfaces and colours that remind you of a smoke spiced herring or “kūčiukai” – traditional Lithuanian pastry served with poppy seed milk, or cranberry jelly, or hemp salt with boiled potatoes… A subject of Christmas food and variations of common fashion accessories.
However, after getting deeper into every exhibited object and its story that underlie simple lines of felt, you realize the meaning of collating felt and Christmas food by the felt makers of this exhibition.
Christmas food symbolizes respect and consonance, it is food that unites all living family members and guests from the world beyond – souls of our ancestors. Authors of the exhibition refer to a belief that souls of the ancestors hold onto plants, hair and wool…
Drawing their inspiration from ancient traditional meanings of Christmas food, authors complement it with modern touch of this celebration, symbolically connecting wool as a sacred shelter of souls and blessed food for all living and dead, wind, cold, and bees. Authors of the exhibition, using modern felting techniques, invite us to “feast” and rediscover the meanings of this holly period of time even in such (at first glance) common and casual cosmopolitan fashion accessories – felt objects with special purport.