‘Net-Work’ by Adrian Baker: New Exhibit at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum (1)

Press Release – Mississippi Valley Textile Museum

Join the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum (MVTM) on Saturday, April 27 from 1-4 p.m. for the exhibit opening of “Net-Work” by Adrian Baker. The exhibit will be on display from April 27 to July 6.

“Net-Work” is a socially-engaged fibre art installation that has drawn both national and international interest and participation. This ongoing collaborative fiber art installation was one of the ten finalists for the 2021 Berlin Social Arts Award. Embodying the vast underground webs of mycorrhizal fungi and roots that enable symbiotic tree interaction, this collaborative project functions as a collective expression of care for our non-human kin.

“We’re excited for ‘Net-Work’ and how it will transform the lower gallery and invite discussion about the interconnectivity of the world around us and the roots below us. It’s a great opportunity for visitors to be fully immersed in an installation and prompt their imagination,” said Michael Rikley-Lancaster, Executive Director/Curator, Mississippi Valley Textile Museum.

Baker invited the public to participate in this installation by crafting long, fibrous “strands”, using repurposed yarn or textiles as their medium. Over 300 strands have been created by a diverse range of participants including artists, fibre guild members, and amateur crafters. The strands are woven, knitted, crocheted, braided, and stitched using handspun and dyed wool, synthetic yarns, fabric remnants, reeds, fleece, jute, burlap, plastic, wire, shells, and beads, and reach up to 4.5 metres long. Hundreds of these colourful, interwoven strands will encompass the entire MVTM gallery, letting visitors walk among them and suggesting the experience of moving through a huge underground network of roots and fungi.

Baker considers “Net-Work” to be a creative form of environmental activism, and the MVTM is looking forward to bringing it to the Museum and encouraging conversation about the relationships and communication within nature, and between ourselves in this modern world.                            

About Mississippi Valley Textile Museum

The Mississippi Valley Textile Museum is committed to collecting, preserving, and telling the stories of the local mill workers and labour history, while offering an open, inclusive space for the local community and visitors from across the globe.

If you wish to enquire about Museum and its operations, please visit the website at: https://mvtm.ca/mvt2/