22.04.26
OPEN CALL "KINDNESS"
posted by Lys d'OrOPEN CALL "Kindness" All Info https://lysdorart.blogspot.com/p/open-call-kindness.html
OPEN CALL "Kindness" All Info https://lysdorart.blogspot.com/p/open-call-kindness.html
In May 2026, the experimental space of Quartier Zukunft – Labor Stadt in Karlsruhe becomes a site of encounter, reflection, and artistic intervention. Under the title “DemokraTEA-Time,” artist Renate Helene Schweizer presents an exhibition that extends far beyond the format of a conventional show. The project marks a significant milestone: 20 years of artistic work using used tea bags as a primary material. Developed over two decades, this practice has evolved into a distinctive form of eco-art that merges aesthetics with global, social, and ecological narratives. Material as a Global Language At first glance, a used tea bag appears trivial—ephemeral, disposable. In Schweizer’s work, however, it becomes a carrier of memory, labor, and interconnectedness. Since 2005, she has collected and transformed thousands of these everyday remnants into: large-scale installations sculptural objects participatory artworks The tea bag functions as a metaphor for: global trade and supply chains cultural rituals and shared practices social and economic inequalities ecological impact and resource consumption Through this material, Schweizer renders visible the hidden infrastructures of globalization—turning the overlooked into a poetic and political medium. Art Embedded in Societal Transformation The exhibition’s setting is crucial. Quartier Zukunft – Labor Stadt is not a traditional gallery, but a real-world laboratory operated within the context of sustainability research and civic participation. It brings together citizens, scientists, policymakers, and institutions to explore new models of urban life. Within this framework, art is not presented as an isolated object but as an active agent in societal transformation. “DemokraTEA-Time” is embedded in national initiatives such as: “Cohesion in Diversity” German Democracy Day This positioning situates Schweizer’s work within urgent contemporary debates around: democracy and participation diversity and coexistence sustainable futures The Artist: Eco-Art as Social Practice Renate Helene Schweizer is an interdisciplinary artist working at the intersection of art, ecology, and social engagement. Her practice is grounded in a radical zero-waste philosophy, developed long before sustainability became a dominant discourse in contemporary art. Her work includes: immersive installations and spatial interventions participatory and community-based projects international collaborations across cultures and generations Projects such as her long-term “Weltenbürger” (Global Citizen) series demonstrate how individual contributions—like a single tea bag—can become part of a larger, interconnected structure. Her approach resonates with expanded notions of art as social sculpture: art not merely as an object, but as a process that shapes relationships, awareness, and collective experience. DemokraTEA-Time as an Artistic Intervention Rather than functioning as a retrospective, “DemokraTEA-Time” operates as an open and participatory format. Visitors are invited to: engage in dialogue reflect on societal conditions experience themselves as part of a shared global fabric The title itself is programmatic: Democracy is not represented—it is enacted. Through acts of gathering, sharing, and conversation, the exhibition creates a space where art becomes a lived democratic practice. Aesthetic of Connection In a time marked by polarization and fragmentation, Schweizer’s work proposes an alternative paradigm: connection instead of division. Her installations demonstrate: how discarded materials can generate new meaning how individual actions are embedded in global systems how art can create spaces for dialogue and empathy “DemokraTEA-Time” ultimately reveals the potential of art to act—not only as reflection, but as intervention. Conclusion With “DemokraTEA-Time,” Renate Helene Schweizer articulates a precise and timely position within contemporary art: A practice that is ecologically conscious socially engaged and democratically operative In collaboration with Quartier Zukunft – Labor Stadt, the exhibition becomes a compelling example of how art today can function simultaneously as: aesthetic practice, social catalyst, and a vision for the future. https://www.quartierzukunft.de/blog/demokratea-time.php
“WeltenBürgerWelt – An Installation for a Place of Humanity” Artist: Renate Helene Schweizer In 2019, within the crypt of the City Church in Karlsruhe, a space of connection emerged. Formed from thousands of used tea bags, a fragile yet powerful landscape unfolds — a network of stories, memories, and shared existence. Each thread, each surface carries traces of people from around the world. What once belonged to everyday life becomes a symbol of connection. The installation from german Eco-Artist Renate Helene Schweizer invites us to pause. To encounter one another. To feel. Beyond origin, religion, and borders, a space arises that reminds us of what unites us: humanity. One world. One network. One shared space. Art as action. Art as hope. „WeltenBürgerWelt – Installation für einen Ort der Menschlichkeit“ In der Krypta der City-Kirche Karlsruhe entstand 2019 ein Raum, der verbindet. Aus tausenden gebrauchten Teebeuteln gewachsen, entfaltet sich eine fragile, zugleich kraftvolle Landschaft – wie ein Netz aus Geschichten, Erinnerungen und gelebter Welt. Jeder Faden, jedes Blatt trägt Spuren von Menschen aus aller Welt. Was einst Alltag war, wird hier zu einem Zeichen für Verbundenheit. Die Installation der deutschen Eco-Künstlerin Renate Helene Schweizer lädt ein, innezuhalten. Zu begegnen. Zu fühlen. Jenseits von Herkunft, Religion und Grenzen entsteht ein Ort, der uns daran erinnert, was uns verbindet: Menschlichkeit. Eine Welt. Ein Netz. Ein gemeinsamer Raum. Kunst als Handlung. Kunst als Hoffnung. #zerowaste #teabagart #paper #artistsforchange #germanartist
Textile Art Gallery NYC Announces Founding Exhibition: SURFACE TENSION NEW YORK, NY — Textile Art Gallery NYC is pleased to present its debut exhibition, Surface Tension: Founding Artists of Textile Art Gallery NYC, opening March 3, 2026. We'll be honest: opening an artist-run gallery in New York City in 2026 is not the easy path. We're doing it anyway — because we believe there has never been a more important moment for people to experience textile art, and we believe in this work so deeply that we decided to make it happen ourselves. Featuring 25 works by the gallery's founding members, Surface Tension serves as both an introduction to the gallery's vision and a statement of intent: that textile-based art belongs firmly, unapologetically, within the landscape of contemporary fine art. We are not waiting for permission to make that case. The works in Surface Tension uphold fiber art as a critical visual language. Moving beyond traditional grouping by technique, the exhibition is installed as a conversation across the gallery space — individual artistic voices remain distinct, yet thematic resonances emerge through proximity and scale. Visitors will encounter a range of practices where meaning is built slowly over time, as elemental form and thoughtful content support each other to create visual delight and introspection. "This exhibition sets the tone for what is to come," says Co-Director Ellen Piccolo. "We are moving through relationships of color, line, and shape to show that fiber is a way of thinking. Surface Tension reflects how we, as artists, use textiles as a medium to contemplate and express our world view. We built this gallery ourselves because we believe this work demands to be seen — and we weren't willing to wait for someone else to show it." Surface Tension will be on view from March 3 to May 1, 2026. Exhibition Details Title: Surface Tension: Founding Artists of Textile Art Gallery NYC Dates: March 3, 2026 – May 1, 2026 Location: 529 W 20th St, 6th Floor, New York, NY Website: www.textileartnyc.com
JoAnne Artman Gallery, presents: Here Comes The Sun: A Group Exhibition Featuring James Wolanin, Matt Bilfield, Rebecca Jack, Swan Scalabre, + Todd Kenyon SUMMER 2026 JoAnne Artman Gallery 346 N Coast Hwy | Laguna Beach, CA 92651 Contact: JoAnne Artman Telephone: 949-510-5481 | E-mail: joanneartman@aol.com Website: www.joanneartmangallery.com HERE COMES THE SUN JoAnne Artman Gallery is pleased to present Here Comes the Sun, a radiant summer group exhibition celebrating light, renewal, and the emotional warmth of the season. Bringing together the distinct yet complementary practices of James Wolanin, Matt Bilfield, Rebecca Jack, Swan Scalabre, and Todd Kenyon, the exhibition explores summer as a state of mind--carefree, nostalgic, and alive with possibility. Summer carries its own rhythm: longer days that stretch gently into evening, saturated color, charged air, moments suspended between movement and stillness. In this dynamic presentation, each artist channels that seasonal atmosphere through figuration, abstraction, and bold chromatic interplay. Together, their works reveal how color, form, and gesture can evoke both optimism and introspection. James Wolanin’s nostalgic compositions feel cinematic and reflective, capturing intimate moments that echo the introspection of slow summer afternoons. Matt Bilfield’s crisp graphic sensibility distills familiar, panoramic forms into striking, color-saturated statements that feel both playful and refined. Rebecca Jack’s composed figures inhabit a poised stillness that suggests contemplation beneath the surface of leisure, her restrained palette unfolding with subtle warmth. Swan Scalabre’s poetic reinterpretations of women evoke summer as a luminous season of escape and reinvention, where time softens, memory shimmers, and the possibility of becoming something new quietly unfolds. Todd Kenyon’s fluid waterscapes move with a sense of tide and current, mirroring the season’s ebb and flow. Together, these five voices create a dialogue that feels immersive and transportive. Here Comes the Sun invites viewers to linger, to experience the emotional texture of summer in its fullness: its ease, its intensity, its quiet reflection, and its boundless horizon, offering a space to slow down, to breathe deeply, and to inhabit the generous space that summer makes possible. These artists’ work will inspire, provoke, engage and mesmerize. With visual perceptions always changing, peek behind the stories told and you're sure to find the right artistic expression.
