The Laundry Collective

25. 4. 2025

The Laundry Collective, Jak vyjádřit touhu nemožného [How to Express Longing for the Impossible], 2022

The Laundry Collective is a group of women who have come together with the goal of changing stereotypes and prejudices against the homeless. Their vision is based on their personal experience with life on the street and their knowledge of the systemic barriers that prevent a dignified life.

They feel that poverty and homelessness do not only comprise material want, but often also a loss of social ties and sense of belonging, as well as isolation. For this reason they created a platform where practical assistance is intertwined with artistic activities. They view culture as a possible tool for change and use art as a means to overcome social isolation. Their activity brings together various social groups and creates a space for meetings among equals, sharing of experiences and joint creation.

The collective collaborates with the Tranzit.cz initiative for contemporary art. In 2022, their film Jak vyjádřit touhu nemožného [How to Express Longing for the Impossible] appeared at the performance art festival We Are All Emotional! and earned first prize at the Marienbad Film Festival. At the Biennale Matter of Art in Prague, Laundry Collective members occupied a selected room in the Prague City Gallery exhibition space, and in 2023 they were invited to the Kyiv Biennial held in Vienna with the video The Yellow Is Black.

How To Make Money Off Artists

In the video How To Make Money Off Artists, the women of the Laundry Collective address how the homeless are depicted in art. They are often portrayed solely as passive objects of pity, not as active creators. The collective members thus decided to change this image and become critics of the participatory art that simplifies and stereotypes their life experiences.