30 December 2024
 An exhibition with a strong connection to Austria that deserves a spot in your 2025 calendar will take place in Germany at the MK&G in Hamburg. This socially critical fashion exhibition showcases the work of an artist and designer who studied in Vienna and has been honored with the city of Vienna's most prestigious fashion prize. In 2021 Jojo Gronostay received the prestigious Fashion Prize of the City of Vienna. Fashion.at attended the ceremony and reported in an article on the prize, which honors his innovative approach to merging art and fashion (article). Gronostay's project 'Dead White Men's Clothes' (DWMC) critiques global textile recycling systems and highlights issues of identity, representation and neo-colonialism. The following year, he presented his work at the MAK Geymüllerschlössel in Vienna as part of the MAK Contemporary Fashion Showcase, where his upcycled creations sparked discussions on sustainability and cultural narratives in the fashion industry (article). Jojo Gronostay's diverse artistic path includes academic training at the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna and the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris. His work has been exhibited at renowned institutions such as the Kunsthalle Wien (details and video at kunsthallewien.at) or the Austrian Cultural Forum New York. Over the years, he has received awards such as the European Month of Photography Award (2023) and the Dorothea von Stetten Art Award (2024), further establishing his reputation as an artist at the intersection of contemporary art and social commentary. In 2025, Gronostay will participate in the 'Fund for Young Design' program organized by the Stiftung Hamburger Kunstsammlungen (SHK). This initiative offers emerging talents the opportunity to explore MK&G's extensive collection, collaborate with curators, and create new work during a six-month residency. The program focuses on fostering innovation in fields such as product design, fashion, and photography, and encourages participants to engage deeply with historical artifacts and materials to inform their practice. The exhibition, which runs from May 22 to August 3, 2025, will highlight Gronostay's exploration of themes such as structural racism, identity, and sustainability. A notable focus is his investigation of the Shirley Card, a color calibration tool historically used in the photographic industry since the 1940s. These cards, which standardized the color balance of photographic paper and film, relied on a pale complexion as the default value, reflecting and perpetuating biases in representation. Gronostay critiques this systemic issue as part of his broader exploration of representation and media norms. The exhibition will focus on his ongoing project, DWMC, in which he upcycles used clothing sourced from Ghana's Kantamanto Market, one of the world's largest used clothing hubs. Additionally, the exhibition will feature Gronostay's photographic work, including the acclaimed series 'Brutalism' (2021), which reimagines discarded shoe heels as monumental architectural forms, reflecting his talent for elevating everyday objects into compelling artistic statements. This show at MK&G offers an in-depth look at Gronostay's innovative practice, highlighting his ability to merge art, fashion, and social critique. It promises to be a thought-provoking showcase of contemporary design and its potential to address critical global issues. Images courtesy of MK&G Hamburg, from left to right: Portrait of Jojo Gronostay (*1988). Photo: © Lukas Gansterer. Right: Jojo Gronostay (* 1988), Dead White Men's Clothes, 2017, Leather Jacket. Photo: © Jojo Gronostay & Lukas Gansterer. |
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