Al bies: Uncovering Female Artists and Design in the Spanish Avant-Garde

This exhibition explores the 'oblique' trajectory of many female artists from Spain's 'Silver Age' who worked in 'minor' arts like design, textiles, and illustration, often overlooked by the male-dominated canon. It highlights their contributions from the late 19th century until the Spanish Civil War, revealing their professional contexts, creative output, and struggle for public recognition.

Titled 'Al bies' (on the bias), this exhibition, curated by Carmen Gaitán Salinas and Idoia Murga Castro, traces the often-overlooked work of female artists in Spain during the 'Silver Age' (late 19th century to the Civil War). Using the metaphor of a diagonal line, the exhibition highlights how these artists deviated from traditional paths and were frequently excluded from art historical narratives. The exhibition focuses on arts historically considered 'minor' and associated with the feminine, such as interior design, textiles, fashion, bookbinding, illustration, and scenography. It reveals how these disciplines were crucial in challenging gender roles and transitioning women from the private to the public sphere. The exhibition is structured into eleven rooms across six areas, examining artists' professional and educational spaces, textile and book arts, domestic interiors, and their conquest of public spaces. It delves into themes of gender, class, and the frequent invisibilization of these creators. The review details specific artists and their works, including Victorina Durán, Matilde Calvo Rodero, Maruja Mallo, and Delhy Tejero, showcasing their contributions to ceramics, embroidery, fashion design, illustration, and stage design. By drawing from collections of the Museo Nacional de Artes Decorativas and numerous public and private loans, 'Al bies' aims to reconstruct a more complete art history, acknowledging these women as full participants in the avant-garde movements and as pioneers who expanded the canon of Spain's artistic 'Silver Age'.

The exhibition was held at the Museo Nacional de Artes Decorativas. Specific ticketing information is not detailed in this review, but as part of a national museum, general museum admission policies likely applied. Visitors were directed to the official museum website for further details.