With the show Future Generation, Margot Van den Berghe's two-year residency at MAD Brussels comes to an end. In her series Palimpsest, she gives used textiles a new life.
Designer of the month: Margot Van den Berghe
When the then 18-year-old Margot Van den Berghe, almost by accident, discovered Textile Design studies, the pieces of the puzzle immediately fell into place. “I was doing sculpture and painting in secondary school at Sint-Lucas, and in my spare time I did sewing. The independent viewpoint that they take of textiles at Ghent's LUCA School of Arts helped me bring all these passions together.”
My grandmother was always sewing, and she regularly mended our clothes. I probably also inherited that attitude of not throwing anything away, and giving fabrics a second life from her
Wherein lies the power of textile?
Margot Van den Berghe: Its tactile nature invites us to touch, and makes the medium more accessible. Literally everyone cherishes a memory of a certain fabric. That is something that I feel very strongly. My grandmother was always sewing, and she regularly mended our clothes. I probably also inherited that attitude of not throwing anything away, and giving fabrics a second life from her.
How does that translate into your work?
Van den Berghe: For my series Palimpsest, I create a nuanced patchwork from surplus textiles, on which I embroider geometric patterns using recycled threads. The title refers to the reuse of parchment. Once a text was no longer needed, the precious parchment was scraped and reused.
Has the residency influenced your work?
Van den Berghe: Even though I work with textiles, it was the first time that I was mostly surrounded by designers. They like to share insights from their practice, look for concrete solutions, and are more open to collaborations which I found inspiring. It's fascinating how textiles can be both autonomous and applied.
What will the future bring?
Van den Berghe: I would like to do some residencies abroad, and I would absolutely like to collaborate more with other artists or designers. The connecting power of textile fascinates me. I explore those possibilities together with people with dementia in workshops on recycling at Huis Perrekes in Geel. Even small actions bring them to life.
Margot Van den Berghe's work is part of Future Generation (> 16/11) at MAD Brussels, mad.brussels; Instagram: margotvandenberghe
Read more about: Expo , Margot Van den Berghe , Future Generation , MAD Brussels
