2 October 2010 – 6 March 2011
To coincide with the autumn exhibition ‘Contemporary Eye: Crossovers’, Pallant House Gallery presents a radical textiles installation by the Norwegian artist Lise Bjørne Linnert. Featuring thousands of name labels hand- sewn by members of the public, the piece aims to draw attention to the widespread trafficking and murders of women in Ciudad Juarez in Mexico.
More than 500 women have been brutally murdered, and hundreds more have disappeared over the last 13 years on the US border town of Ciudad Juárez and the region of Chihuahua in Mexico. Explanations for the murders range from serial killers, the use of women as prizes for drug cartels and domestic violence, and so-called sexual violence tourism.
Desconocida Unknown Ukjent was conceived by artist Lise Bjørne Linnert in 2006 in response to this critical situation. Participants are invited to embroider the names of the dead and missing women of Juarez onto labels in white silk thread. They are also invited to embroider the word ‘unknown' in their own language and alphabet to remember all the unidentified victims of similar crimes worldwide. So far 2100 individuals in 27 countries have participated in the project worldwide and more than 4000 labels have been embroidered.