Identity, loss and textile memory
As a person with a history of migration, the question of identity has always been central and complicated.
For a long time, I had difficulties clearly defining my Belarusian identity - it remained fragmented, ambivalent, characterised by surveillance and often overlaid by external attributions and political realities.
I was there during the protests in Minsk and experienced massive violence and extreme control by the state. There was great hope for change, self-determination and freedom - but the liberation struggle failed. Today, the expression of Belarusian identity is increasingly restricted and banned (criminalised).
My artistic work, in which I deal with questions of identity, politics and memory, makes a return to Belarus impossible. For me, identity is inextricably linked with control, violence and prohibition, with homesickness and loss of homeland - experiences that deeply characterise my artistic work.
In my drawings and photographs, I process feelings around the loss of identity and the political influences on it.I then translate these drawings into textile works. For me, textile is a material that carries meaning - it has a long history as a carrier of cultural identity, memory, protest and collective experience.
Embroidery in particular is deeply rooted in Belarusian culture. They are closely linked to nature, which is depicted abstractly in traditional floral patterns on tablecloths, for example. These motifs reflect a deep emotional connection with the environment and cultural heritage.
Жыве Беларусь !
KATHARINA BÜTTGEN
work and live in Karlsruhe, Germany
Exhibitions
Soloshows
03/2025: „Calling for spring“, The Factory, Berlin (DE)
08/2024: „Mama, they say I‘m a terrorist, Haus der Statistik, Berlin (DE)
Duoshows
05/2025: Memory in Matter, Studija_Space, Kuldiga (LV)
06/2024: „Wenn niemand hinsieht“, Karlsruhe(DE)
Groupshows
11/20211/2025y Angel, Zürich(CH)
10/2025: Flintenweiber_#4reloaded, Kunsthafen, Cologne (DE)
06- 07/2025: Somewhere... everyday. Die Politisierung des Alltäglichen,
Frauenmuseum Bonn (DE)
04/2025: There is no river without sources, PAKD Gallery, Berlin (DE)03/2025: „It‘s important to leave“, Kunstverein „Zehnthaus“, Jockgrim (DE)
03/2025: „Von Belarus nach Deutschland, Kalinowskiraum, Karlsruhe (DE)
12/2024: Annual Exhibition (juried), Karlsruhe (DE)
09/2024: Flintenweiber Extended, Köln (DE)
06/2024: Regionale in Donaueschingen (DE)
06/2024: Duo-show „Wenn niemand hinsieht“, Karlsruhe(DE)
06/2024: Artexpo, Basel (CH)
04/2024: „Small works that travel a long distance“, Athen (GR)
12/2023: Gallery Künstlerbunker, Leverkusen (DE)
05/2023: Art Karlsruhe, Karlsruhe (De)
12/2022: Gallery Künstlerbunker, Leverkusen (DE)
05/2022: Gallery Künstlerbunker, Leverkusen (DE)
Education
11/2024- 03/2025 Artist Resarch: Rethink belarusian Culture, Berlin
Platformization of Politics in Non- democracies:
Belarus in the 2020s in Comparative Perspective
Since 10/2022 Academy of fine arts, Karlsruhe Diploma fine arts,
painting and graphics
class of Prof. Franz Ackermann
10/2019- 03/2022 University of Cologne
Bachelor of Arts, Art and Philosophy
Scholarship and Residency
2025: ELPA Residency, Livanu novads, Latvia
Residency at Studija_Space in Kuldiga, Latvia
2022: DAAD Scholarship for education abroad
Publishing
2025:
Hox-Magazin
Obindo- Magazin
June-Edition at Subomagazine