Ruth Thomas

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STRIPE PARLIAMENTS

The German Federal Parliament from 1949 to 2017

This work is based on the first appearance in 60 years of a right-wing party (AfD) in the German Federal Parliament in 2017. The number of elected AfD representatives defines the height of the two knitworks (94 seats = 94 stitches).

Each stitch corresponds to one seat, each colour to one parliamentary group. The order of the groups corresponds to the traditional seating in the German Federal Parliament: The Left, SPD, The Greens, CDU/CSU, FDP, AfD.

Both works show the 19 parliaments to date (each on the day of the respective federal election). In one, the parliaments are shown in chronological order, while in the other, they are combined and arranged according to the individual groups.

Detached from the political context, the abstract stripe pattern captivates by its strong and surprisingly balanced colourfulness, which is nothing more than the result of a given concept.

(Knitted mohair wool, 2 works, each 62 x 34 cm, frames 72 x 52 cm, 2017)