The Chilean-Swedish designer constructed The Thread-Wrapping Machine as his tool and medium. Used like a DIY sewing machine with pedal control, the “wrapper” joins a mix of wood, plastic, metal, fur, felt, paint and other materials into bright, exuberant furniture. Glue-coated thread holds the various parts together into a solid structure and provides the joinery. Alvarez does not use any other tools or fasteners. Thread is the artist’s construction and composition, a framework as well as shape, pattern, line, and color.
Alvarez will transform the gallery into his studio, using his machine to make new work in the space. Coming in and out as he pleases (during both open and closed gallery hours), Alvarez will produce a variety of furniture pieces – chairs, side tables, benches and lamps – alongside abstract objects and architectural elements including columns, totems and arches in the space. The exhibition will celebrate process, performance and craft, as well as design objects with and without “function.”
Bowery, New York, NY