material disobedience

material disobedience is a vivid showcase of contemporary craft practices that reclaim and revel in what has been minimized as the frivolously feminine, the scandalously queer, or the exotically ornamental.
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Rhinestones, beads, crystals, embroidery, textiles, and ceramics have all been variously perceived as symbols of “excessive” cultures or lifestyles, an association that reinforces creative hierarchies and trivializes queer and femme identities. By centering these materials in their work and transforming the stigma of “excess” into creative inspiration, the artists entwine visual and haptic pleasures with critical analyses of labour, gender, sex, and colonialism.
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Attendees are encouraged to consider how the pleasures of looking (and touching) can be entwined with political experience: whether the place-making praxis of queer cruising (Théo Bignon), the gendered politics of textiles or the finger-pointing spectacle of female celebrities (Molly JF Caldwell), linkages between diasporic longing and queer femme adornment rituals (Lux Gow-Habrich), or surreal visions of a post-Anthropocene plastic empire (Hea R. Kim).
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Curated by Madeline Collins, the exhibition will be on view at The Lost & Found Project Space (tlaf.ca), from May 30 to June 20, 2026. The opening reception will be held on Saturday, May 30, 6-10pm — all are welcome!
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Want to see more? Visit our Eventbrite to sign up for an artist-led embroidery workshop with Théo Bignon on May 29, and a panel discussion with the artists at the Harbourfront Centre on May 30, 1-3pm.
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This exhibition and programming was made possible by funding from the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, AND the Toronto Arts Council. A panel discussion will be hosted by Harbourfront Centre Craft & Design, and the exhibition is generously supported by artverb*.

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