“Through her meticulous exploration of the Balenciaga archives, Edith Dekyndt reveals unexpected points of convergence and subtle dialogues between contemporary art and haute couture,” explains María Inés Rodríguez, the exhibition’s curator.
The Fabric Decides brings together some fifty works by Edith Dekyndt – including around thirty being shown for the first time – and over thirty pieces from the Balenciaga archives. It reveals how, for both these creators, fabric transcends its role as a mere medium to become an active force in the creative process. The exhibition focuses on materials, gestures, the body and the transformations of objects.
Two perspectives on material
Since the mid-1980s, Edith Dekyndt (b. 1960, Belgium) has built a practice based on subtle phenomena: variations, deposits, traces, alterations, and materials whose properties are involved in shaping the form they take. Her working processes allow various phenomena and materials to determine, to a degree, the work’s ultimate form. The body is also present, either directly or through gestures, objects and the traces it leaves behind.
This attentiveness to process finds an echo in the work of Cristóbal Balenciaga (1895–1972, Spain). Particularly during the Parisian part of his career, from the 1930s up to the 1960s, the couturier developed an exceptional understanding of materials and their possibilities. His garments were constructed through a close interplay between material, cut and body: the fabric, with its weight, suppleness or resistance, contributes to the form in its own right.
María Inés Rodríguez points out: “The practices of Dekyndt and Balenciaga converge in their exploration of materiality, temporality, forms and textures.”
Artworks and archives in dialogue
The exhibition brings together works created especially for this occasion or selected from Dekyndt’s earlier practice, as well as sketch- and notebooks from her archives. These elements resonate with the garments, accessories, samples and documents from the archives of Maison Balenciaga.
The exhibition unfolds across three rooms. A monumental veil by Dekyndt, inspired by a textile sample from the Balenciaga archives, spans the space of the Rotonde Royale in the Centre for Fine Arts, structuring our visit. In another room, working processes are juxtaposed, encompassing observation, experimentation and a focus on the properties of materials. In another ensemble, the passage of time and the different lives of the objects become apparent through the garments, which bear witness to a history shaped by use, appropriation and preservation.
Archival work lies at the heart of this exhibition. By exploring the archive of the Maison Balenciaga, Dekyndt draws out connections between techniques, textures, construction details and different time periods.
Edith Dekyndt, who has visited the Balenciaga’s Archives more than six times, reflects: “I was moved by the silent presence of bodies within the clothes. Even in their absence, they remained perceptible in the folds, tensions and distortions of the fabric, evoking the movement of the body and the wearing of the garment." She adds: “These objects are imbued with memories: the material becomes the intersection of the body, time and the environment."
A title borrowed from Balenciaga
The title of the exhibition, The Fabric Decides, is a quote attributed to Cristóbal Balenciaga. It suggests that the fabric possesses its own qualities, limitations, memory and possibilities, which themselves drive the process of constructing the form.
Edith Dekyndt: “‘The fabric decides’ is a quote from Balenciaga that applies perfectly to my practice. I like to let the fabric express itself […]. Balenciaga, too, was someone for whom the fabric took center stage. Instead of using drawings as a definitive reference, he would, so to speak, use the fabrics to 'sculpt' pieces .”
“These garments carry memories. They bear the traces of a body that once wore them, of a time gone by, and of repeated use. The fabric is the intersection of the body, time and the environment.”
“These objects are imbued with memories: the material becomes the site of a relationship between the body, time and the environment. Creation thus arises less from a desire for control than from a dialogue with what the material offers or allows to emerge.”
“I try to introduce multiple readings into the pieces or installations by using fairly basic means, and in such a way that everyone can see something singular in them. I try to reveal, to highlight, to make visible as well as to make disappear.
They may also provide insight into anthropological, historical, geographical, physical, geological, chemical and meteorological aspects, amongst others.
Nevertheless, the works are generally the result of an intuitive process that blends the conscious and the unconscious, the material and the immaterial, the pure and the impure, the ignoble and the sublime.”
"Through close collaboration with Edith Dekyndt, Balenciaga sought to explore its heritage from a fresh perspective. Both, the artist and the archives bring to light works and silhouettes that have often remained in the shadow of iconic pieces, revealing a multifaceted legacy composed of details, gestures, and fragile memories. This collaboration creates a space for contemplation where the past comes alive through the visitor’s eyes."
“Edith Dekyndt’s work expresses a fascination with the elusive and the intangible, grounding her pieces in the notion of impermanence. Her installations capture moments of transformation and reveal the influence of the environment on materials […]. ”
“Through her meticulous exploration of the Balenciaga archives, Edith Dekyndt reveals unexpected points of convergence and subtle dialogues between contemporary art and haute couture. Her approach also highlights issues of sustainability, preservation and memory.”
“Craftsmanship and innovation, these notions are at the heart of this dialogue between two distinct practices, that unfold in two distinct eras, but which share so many preoccupations. Through the eyes of Edith Dekyndt, we are invited to look closely at the practice of Cristóbal Balenciaga, as if putting his work under a microscope or - as she does in two new works made for this occasion - enlarging and transforming tiny fragments of his fabrics into large, room-filling installations. This is the first time that the Maison Balenciaga opens its doors - and its drawers - to a contemporary art, in an act of confidence and generosity to both Dekyndt and to us, the audience.”C’est la première fois que la Maison Balenciaga ouvre ses portes – et ses tiroirs – à l’art contemporain, dans un élan de confiance et de générosité tant envers Edith Dekyndt qu’envers nous, le public. »
