In Pursuit of a Two-Headed Metaphor: Pae White and “Pushmi-Pullyu” at neugerriemschneider

You might recall that famous two-headed creature looking in two different directions at once, the “pushmi-pullyu,” from Hugh Lofting’s legendary Doctor Dolittle stories. American contemporary artist Pae White gives precisely this name to her seventh solo exhibition at neugerriemschneider, one of Berlin’s leading galleries. Bridging mass production and handcraft, global technology and local traditions, the exhibition continues to host art lovers in Mitte (Christinenstraße 18–19) until August 8, 2026.

At the center of this seventh solo exhibition by Pasadena-born (1963) Pae White at the gallery are monumental sculptures of insects, crabs, and butterflies shaped in massive sizes using resin-encased thread. These creatures, usually overlooked or underrated in daily life, occupy the space in both textile and sculptural forms through translucent, lustrous resin and complex layers of thread.

The most striking dimension of the exhibition lies in the collaboration with master artisans of the Wixárika people from the state of Jalisco, Mexico. Wixáritari craftspeople, who have been creating unique visual universes for centuries by laying cotton threads onto resin-covered wooden panels, collaborate with White under the leadership of master Manolo Castro Montoya to produce joint butterfly compositions. This partnership directly opens up for debate that fragile point of contact between the global art market and deep-rooted local traditions.

Simultaneously, digital Jacquard weaves—produced in collaboration with the renowned TextielLab Tilburg in the Netherlands and considered a precursor to computer coding with their 19th-century punch-card system—form the algorithmic leg of the exhibition. Bringing together the organic warmth of Wixárika thread and the cold algorithms of digital looms under the same roof, the works offer the viewer a visual feast where the boundaries between craft and technology melt away.

Visitable free of charge in the gallery halls in Mitte from Tuesday–Friday 11:00–18:00 and Saturday 11:00–16:00, the exhibition stands as one of the most mature fruits of material-focused investigations Pae White has pursued since the early 2000s. If your path takes you to Christinenstraße before August 8, it is an unmissable opportunity to witness how traditional manual labor and digital production can stand side by side on the very same fabric.