Biennale of Marrakech

El Anatsui was exhibiting at the Palais el Badii.

I love the folds of metal making it take on the properties of cloth.

The metal looks soft and pliable like a blanket.

I love the size of this work.

It looks beautiful exhibited outside. I can only imagine the sun light touching the medium and making it glow.

To see more of my posts about El Anatsui click here.

(photo credit Sophia Reford)

Studio Visit in Umbria

While in Umbria I visited my friend, Virginia Ryan,  in her art studio.

Acrylic paintings by Virginia Ryan fill the studio space.
Exhibit SHIFT, 2013

She is an established multidisciplinary artist. She is also a mother and an author.

She has lived for many years in West Africa and that influence is evident in her art work. Please read on her website "White is a Color" by scrolling 1/5th of the way down.

detail, Les Femmes de Gagne A'la' Rue du Commerce/4
160cm x 180cm
2013
acrylic on canvas

Eight years ago, I saw her multi-entry exhibit at the GCAM (galleria civica d'arte moderna palazzo collicola) in Spoleto. Photography, paintings, collage, sculpture, video and voice.

On this visit, I was particularly interested in her fabric-related work from her SHIFT installation.

fabric dresses as inspiration

She is such a wonderful person full of life and full of great ideas AND a great hostess! I find her inspirational to me as a person and as an artist.

Catalogue cover for SHIFT 

She will be giving us a tour of her studio and a presentation about her work on the Umbria Textile Trip I am organizing for August 2016.

Wrapped and Unwrapped

I noticed lots of tree wrapping while I drove from Cape Town to Port Elizabeth, South Africa.

The locals told me they do that to attract attention to a neighbourhood or a fare or a shopping area.

Some of the wraps were knitted.

I noticed tree "unwrapping" in Kruger National Park.

The elephants pull off the bark and eat the sap.

photo by friend Rich Prangley

One of the elephants I saw
(acknowledging us with his fanned-out ears)
on one of the
many game drives I went on.

Valtopina Embroidery Festival

I was in Umbria earlier this month.

Photo of a poster of Valtopina, Umbria.

I visited an annual embroidery/ hand-work festival.

Official opening of the festival with the Zimbabwe ambassador
and italian government officials present

I wanted to see how this festival had evolved from when I exhibited my work there several years ago. Next September, I will be co-curating with Joe Lewis a textile exhibit for this event.

There was some felted works.

Licheni by Giulia Rizzo from GIfelt

There was a quilt booth full of hand stitched and quilted works.

Mrs. Stephenson stands in front of her log cabin quilt.

I bought a crocheted ring and wore it every sunny day in September!

My ring made by Luisa De Santi. Her book looks great!

I loved the contemporary embroidery by (please check back as I have misplaced her business card)

details of the embroidery

I loved a textile work by men from a maximum security prison!

I especially liked their hand-made label!

translated it says, Let us not imprison creativity.
Let us give more room to the ideas and fantasy.
The men who worked on this project signed with pride!

This year, Zimbabwe textiles were exhibited.

Dorcas Shumba is a fashion designer.
She uses traditional fabrics from her native Zimbabwe
to create her contemporary clothing line.
At the moment she is doing a PhD in New Zealand in
International Development.

I am leaving Italy and going to South Africa. I hope to have some interesting textile things to report to you while I am there.

Metal Tapestries

One of El Anatsui's work is part of the permanent collection at the Centre Pompidou. He gained international recognition in 1990 when he represented Africa in the Venice Biennale.

About two years ago, the Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto, Canada, hosted a 40-year retrospective of his work.

Sasa, 2004

This monumental work can be displayed in different configurations which the artist leaves to the curator to decide.

Its size is very powerful.

His metal tapestries recall the golden shimmer of Klimt paintings, evokes weaving and cloth and even sculpture.

He used flattened liquor-bottle tops and "sews" them together with copper wire. His medium, introduced by Europeans, hints at the relationship between Africa and the Western world.

Jump In

I find this african fabric refreshing! Like a pool of water sparkling in the sun.

I am still at the beach in southern Italy enjoying the sea.