This event offers a private tour of the art exhibition THREADS OF LIFE at the Kunstforum of TU Darmstadt. With “THREADS OF LIFE. Corina Gertz & Hannah Maria Schmutterer”, the Kunstforum der TU Darmstadt presents an exhibition that focuses on textile practices, cultural identity, and questions of visibility. The title is intended as a programmatic motif: Threads of Life refers to the diverse connections between fabric, body, history, and memory, which both artists make visible in their own unique ways.

Photographer Corina Gertz presents works from her ongoing series The Averted Portrait, which she has been working on worldwide for many years. In her photographs, she portrays women in traditional clothing—but always from behind. The face remains hidden, and the clothing itself becomes a symbol of history, craftsmanship, origin, and social belonging. The result is a quiet yet powerful exploration of themes such as diversity, inclusion, and the values of a democratic society.

Hannah Maria Schmutterer expands this dialogue with works that interweave textile art, painting, poetry, and performance. Her works explore how femininity, memory, and cultural attributions are inscribed in fabrics—and how these meanings can be transformed through artistic practice. By sewing, unraveling, and reconnecting materials, personal and collective threads of life become tangible and are linked anew.

Together, Gertz and Schmutterer weave together different perspectives on femininity, memory, and cultural identity into a multi-layered tapestry of images: THREADS OF LIFE. Corina Gertz & Hannah Maria Schmutterer thus becomes a sensual and intellectual resonance chamber in which photography, textiles, and theory are woven together into a fabric of history, present, and future.

The exhibition ties in closely with the theme of World Design Capital Frankfurt Rhine-Main 2026 – »Design for Democracy. Atmospheres for a better life.« Both artistic positions reflect in different but interwoven ways on how aesthetic design can contribute to a deeper understanding of democracy, diversity, and cultural identity.

After the exhibition, there will be the opportunity to visit the Darmstadt Christmas Market together.

Target group: Doctoral candidates and postdocs of the Rhine-Main Universities 

Language: English