Footnotes to an exhibition

Occupying Spaces: the White Dress Project dwells in the intersection between looking and interpreting. Even before underlining this endless intertwining, the exhibition suggests that the
initial choice of the object is a problematic yet crucial step. By displaying identical dresses in diverse contexts it has been possible to suggest the multiple meanings and narratives one garment can embody. This has provoked questions surrounding concepts of identity and difference, replica and repetition and the curatorial implications these can generate. Does the value of a multiple enhance or hinder the value of difference?

If a form is repeated, is the idea reinforced or weakened? What is the creative process behind the
making of a copy? The different ways of manipulating the originally identical items are a form of
de-identification, and thus of critical and curatorial praxis. They may also be perceived as a multiplication or extension of self- identity. In the same way that the stitch visibly holds together the pieces of the dress, the identification of unseen narratives are critical to constructing its meaning.