Keep ___ close to your chest

Keep your pastlad close to your chest.
Keep your трусики close to your chest.
Keep your shopping cart close to your chest.
Keep your рубашка close to your chest.
Keep your brooch close to your chest.
Keep your колготки close to your chest.
Keep your dress close to your chest.
Keep ____ close to your chest.

 

How do garments express what people want to keep close to their chest? The exhibition “Keep ____ close to your chest” is a contemporary art and fashion exhibition that reflects the multilayered nature of contemporary nationalism and suggests new perspectives on garments addressing nationalism in an open and changing system. The exhibition includes both artists working as fashion designers and notable visual artists. The exhibition is a further development of the VI Artshok Biennale exhibition that took place in 2018 at the Baltic railway station.

 

The exhibition stems from the understanding that national affiliations, identities and related meanings change and transform in time and continuously gain new relevance in public discussions. The artists review to their works and ideas they initially created for the 2018 exhibition. Three years later, the world has considerably changed and the artists return to develop and consider these ideas anew.

 

The exhibited works are accompanied by texts by six different writers, adding new perspectives to the pieces. Among other things, the artists question national affiliations, traditions and related developments and shifts in today’s world. Who has the ability, desire and right to belong? Are our traditions and beliefs intrinsically ours or do these also reflect global trends? What hidden histories have remained in the background, while national narratives are performed? When should we consider the development of traditions and beliefs on a national level? To what extent does our language mark our national identity? What is the inevitable trace of belonging? How comfortable are we with wearing our nationality on our body?

 

The exhibition is produced by the Estonian Centre for Contemporary Art together with the Narva Museum.

 

Artists: Tanja Muravskaja, Kärt Ojavee, Kris Lemsalu, Ragne Kikas, Dmitri Gerasimov, Claudia Lepik, Laivi, Formés and Jaanus Samma
Writers: Aet Annist, Annamari Vänskä, Margit Lõhmus, Oliver Laas, Gustav Kalm and Aleksander Rostov

Curator: Sten Ojavee (Estonian Centre for Contemporary Art)
Designer: Sandra Kosorotova
Exhibition design: Valge Kuup Studio