Curators in an interview: “Glitter is strongly characterized by devaluations”

Nina Lucia Groß: Glitter can change situations very quickly. Everyday moments and streets are transformed with a little glitter. Carnival is also about high spirits, you know it's unreasonable and you have that foolish moment when you briefly break with all conventions and go overboard. Glitter is a suitable material for this break from everyday life for several reasons: Glitter brings joy, creates attention and visibility, and is affordable and accessible.

Julia Meer: Glitter is never necessary. Glitter is always the extra. Glitter captivates and controls attention. Anyone who applies glitter therefore expects to be looked at. At the same time, glitter protects because it creates a self-designed, reflective surface that in a certain way deflects glances.

Groß: We are interested in the moment when you decide to wear glitter. Glitter is strongly characterized by devaluations, by feminization and infantilization. This is not only an aesthetic devaluation, but also an implicit social devaluation, because the groups associated with the material are those who are often denied the right to have a say in cultural and political matters. In the exhibition we are showing artistic and activist positions that play with this devaluation and subversively turn it around: How can I use the material and its apparent unseriousness, superficiality, emotionality to shape my own attitude and identity and my own body in a self-determined way.

Groß: And that is precisely what reflects a misogynistic and often internalized devaluation of the material. Today, in the feminist scene, there is a positive adoption of the term "bimbo" and a self-confident appropriation of a hyper-feminized aesthetic. Why should we have to choose between equality and glitter?

Meer: We find that some people are hesitant about glitter, but if you reassure them that glitter has a certain complexity, they too will get sparkling eyes.

Meer: The closer you get to design, the more difficult it becomes. In design, glitter is considered an unworthy material, which explains why there has never been an exhibition about glitter.

Sea: If you go hiking, you sometimes find glittering stones. Mica is the best-known mineral in the mica group because it is mined very aggressively, unfortunately often with child labor. In the 19th century, glass glitter came into use. This was leftovers from glass bead production, small pieces of broken glass. The glitter we are talking about now is officially known as glitter. It is a material that consists of different layers and always has a defined cut. It is usually hexagonal, there are also square ones, but it is always a precision cut.

Groß: Glitter was first invented in 1934 in New Jersey. Initially, the material was used as a substitute for glass glitter and was mainly used for decoration - especially for holiday decorations. In the 1960s, the second large glitter manufacturer came along, also American, also from New Jersey, just twelve kilometers away from the first. Both are still the largest US exporters of glitter today. With these increased production options, the areas of application also changed. Glitter is used in car and boat paints, and decorates fish bait, credit cards, and banknotes. Since the 1970s, glitter has been widely sold in Europe, including Germany.

Meer: I would say that this is a phenomenon of the 1990s. The explicit gendering of color, with pink meaning girls, began in the international toy industry in particular.

Groß: Even though Barbie had existed before, the focus on the pink glitter world and the associated restriction of identification possibilities increased rapidly in the 1990s.

Meer: But even back then, glitter wasn't just seen as feminine. Glitter toothpaste was also introduced to encourage children to brush their teeth, and glitter Matchbox cars. The fact that glitter is still perceived as feminine is also due to the context in which it is used: on stage, women often wore the eye-catching clothes, with the exception ofElvis Presley and the glam rock and disco era. But we were both amazed that cosmetic glitter has only been around for about 20 years. Before that, people simply took craft glitter and mixed it with sticky substances. Skin irritations were accepted.

Meer: David Bowie is criticized today for appropriating aesthetics from queer communities without publicly declaring himself queer. At the same time, he brought these aesthetics to a pop stage and thereby ensured acceptance and visibility among a broad public.

Groß: I can imagine that this is how female fan behavior differs from male fan behavior. Women identify more strongly with role models like Miley Cyrus, Britney Spears or Taylor Swift. It's almost a friendship that is also controlled and promoted by the marketing and portrayal of the stars. For men, on the other hand, there seems to be a greater separation between star and fan.

Groß: But many contemporary K-pop bands are also about playing around and breaking down rigid boundaries of gender identity. This is taken on by the fans.

Meer: Originally, glitter was made of aluminum and plastic. In biocompatible glitter, these materials are now being replaced by cellulose substances. There are different variants: glitter that is degradable and glitter that has to be in a certain environment in order to be degradable. The plastic content has been removed from all of them, but some still contain aluminum. This also depends on the context of use; cosmetic glitter has to have different properties than glitter that is built into a floor. But what we also think is important with regard to the environmental discussion: glitter makes up a maximum of 0.1 percent of microplastics. Nobody is talking about car tires or synthetic clothing, but glitter is banned.

Meer: You can ask who will be affected by this glitter ban and thus be further marginalized and pushed into a certain narrow position. Some interpret it as a criticism of hedonism, some say it is anti-queer. Fortunately, there is now organic glitter.