In 2021, Otobong Nkanga was the first artist to work on the TextielLab’s new 3.5-metre-wide, computer-controlled Dornier loom. This resulted in ‘Unearthed’, a series of four, six-metre-long tapestries that were exhibited on each floor of Kunsthaus Bregenz in Austria. The collaboration led to a commission for the TextielMuseum’s own collection: ‘Tied to the Other Side’.
‘Tied to the Other Side’ visualises the cycle of regeneration. Developed on the wide loom in the TextielLab, the impressive tapestry shimmers a multi-coloured, impressionistic blue. It suggests the depth of the sea and earth. In search of minerals and ores, international companies exploit the deep sea and deeper levels of the earth to mine valuable materials such as copper and cobalt. A thin needle piercing a body symbolises the machine as a system designed to exploit people and nature. Fortunately, signs of transformation and new growth are also visible: colourful bubbles float to the surface and bright beams emitted from a pole seem to point to unknown possibilities in the future.
In ‘Tied to the Other Side’, Nkanga brought together all the acquired knowledge and techniques from the ‘Unearthed’ series. Her working method is highly experimental: she tries things out on the loom, chooses the elements she likes from the samples produced and adjusts the image accordingly.
For this work, Nkanga combined matte merino wool with various glossy yarns. The use of monofilament gives the fabric a shine and a certain amount of stiffness that works nicely. But the fabric also incorporates recycled PET yarn, viscose and Elirex, all of which have a different shine or brilliance.
By weaving in two layers, with a transparent upper layer of thinner yarn, the colours in the upper and lower layers blend together. This can be seen in the arms, for example. By deliberately using a tighter weave in some places, a bulging effect is created.
Otobong Nkanga (Nigeria, 1974) is a visual and performance artist. She studied at Obafemi Awolowo University in Ile-Ife in Nigeria and the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts in Paris. In 2008, she obtained her master’s degree in performing art from Dasarts, Amsterdam. Her work has been shown at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, Tate Modern in London and the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, among others. Through her large-scale installations, performances and textile oeuvre, Nkanga explores the relationships between geography, nature and the economy, and the impact of those relationships on human life. These include the climate crisis, the extraction and distribution of raw materials and their effects on people and the environment. Nkanga translates these topics into a poetic visual language that speaks to the viewer on an emotional level.
‘KUB 2021.04 – Otobong Nkanga’, Kunsthaus Bregenz, October 2021-March 2022
‘Underneath the Shade We Lay Grounded’, Sint-Janshospitaal, June-September 2022
