Redefined Surfaces: Gesture, Materiality, and Process in Contemporary Textile Abstraction

Abstract

Artistic experiments that emerged between the 1960s and 1970s — from Postminimalism and Antiform to Analytical Painting and the research of groups like Supports-Surfaces — triggered a radical redefinition of the aesthetic and material parameters of artistic production.
Foundational studies at the intersection of art history and feminist theory, such as those by Rozsika Parker and Griselda Pollock, highlighted how the concepts of art and artistic value are products of social constructions deeply rooted in cultural and institutional dynamics.
In this context of redefining formal and symbolic paradigms, textile abstraction positions itself within contemporary developments, including the intersection of abstract art and installation practices in relation to textile art. Case studies and exhibitions are presented, focusing on the relationship between the theoretical coordinates of the second wave of abstraction and its impact on contemporary artistic practices. Through the appropriation of traditionally marginalized techniques, female artists not only expand the vocabulary of abstraction but also redefine the symbolic and cultural value of materials, transforming them into tools for asserting and constructing their identity on both an individual and collective level.