By Karina Devine
Launched in 1993 in Gdynia, Poland, the Baltic Mini Textile exhibition is one of Europe’s leading reviews of textile miniatures. The juried event is held every three years featuring artists from all over the globe.
The remarkable characteristics of the 20cm x 20cm x 20cm textile miniatures are significant for their close ties with the latest trends in contemporary art. The artists are given strict size restrictions while being left with a freedom of choice of topic, material and technique; the resulting miniatures serve as veritable laboratories illuminating the new possibilities presented by artistic textiles.
Warwick Art Gallery was one of the venues selected to receive the first Australian tour of the Baltic Miniatures in 2013. Gallery Director Karina Devine explains how the exhibition was pivotal for the Gallery’s following of textile artists by introducing innovative and radical ideas for their own practice.
“The first international tour of the Baltic Mini Textile collection remains one of the most talked about and influential exhibitions we have had,” says Karina, “Working with the curator at Gdynia City Museum to arrange this tour of mainly works from the 2016 and 2019 Baltic Mini Textile Gdynia exhibitions has been complex but wonderfully rewarding. I am thrilled to demonstrate to other small to medium galleries that big dreams are possible even if you are a small organisation in regional Australia.”
The Baltic Mini Textile Gdynia exhibition features 36 exquisite works from artists based in Europe, the United Kingdom and Australia. The works arrived in Australia, travelling by air, in June after several delays due to COVID19. They have travelled within Queensland and interstate while the Warwick community awaited its turn to see the works which will finally happen in from December 2, 2021.
The Baltic Mini Textile Gdynia exhibition showcases the ingenuity of textile artists as they experiment with scale and push the boundaries of accepted traditional textile materials. The creative solutions reveal the exciting possibilities of the miniature genre.
Warwick Art Gallery (Queensland, Australia) and Gdynia City Museum (Poland), have collaborated to bring this special exhibition to tour Australia. It is a unique partnership that offers a once in a lifetime experience for all lovers of contemporary art. The exhibition dates are 2 December to 15 January. Warwick Art Gallery is open Tuesday to Saturday 10am to 4pm. It will be closed between 24 December and 3 January.
