All the Clothes of a Woman 1970

Curator: Hans-Peter Feldmann's piece, "All the Clothes of a Woman," presents a grid of small, framed photos, each depicting an article of clothing. The effect is…clinical. Editor: Yes, clinical, but also deeply personal. I see a fragmented portrait. Clothes as symbols, right? Each piece carrying a trace of its owner's identity, her daily rituals. Curator: Exactly. Think of the historical context—how clothing has always signified status, gender, power. Feldmann is dissecting that, presenting a collection of visual cues. Editor: And stripping away the individual. These aren't garments worn and loved, but specimens under glass. The shoes, the dresses…they become almost abstract. Curator: They become a code, a system of representation. What does it mean to catalog a life this way? Is it an act of preservation, or objectification? Editor: Perhaps both. The grid itself speaks to a desire for control, to make sense of the chaos of existence through categorization. Curator: Indeed, it prompts reflection on the social roles assigned to women, and the unspoken rules of dress. Editor: The piece makes you wonder about the unseen woman, the ghost in the machine. Curator: It really is a complex piece. Editor: Definitely more than just clothes in boxes.