Sol Sonora del Sur, 2022 Hand-dyed artisanal fishing net, lead weights, gold-plated polished steel plate, copper bells, jade stone, and brass keys
Sol Sonora del Sur is part of the sculptural Cosmotarrayas series. The title of the series combines references to the cosmos and atarraya, meaning “cast net” in Spanish. These weavings reference traditional fishing nets used by many indigenous communities throughout Latin America, with the title of this work specifically honoring those produced by the Yaqui tribe and used on the Yaqui River in the State of Sonora, Mexico.
The sculptures are part of an ongoing investigative project titled Be Damned, that the artist began along the Magdalena River in Colombia. She lived and worked in these waterside communities during the period before a massive dam was built, which blocked the river’s flow and had disastrous ecological and cultural effects on neighboring areas. The open or loose weave of the net sculptures represent the porous nature of borders between land, water, living beings and spiritual realms, as understood in the belief systems of traditional riverside communities, values being disregarded and lost within the context of these massive, militarized hydroelectrical projects.
Nick Cave (b. 1959, United States)
Soundsuit, 2006 Afghan, cotton and found beaded fabric, mannequin, and armature
Carlos Castro (b. 1976, Colombia)
La creación del unicornio, de la serie Mythstories 2019 Woven gobelin
Violence related to narcotrafficking in Colombia is the subject of Carlos Castro’s work, which draws inspiration from the European tradition of tapestry as symbols of royalty and wealth. The piece La creación del unicornio (The Creation of the Unicorn) presents an altered copy of the Gothic period tapestry The Unicorn is Found, from the series The Hunt of the Unicorn, made in The Netherlands around 1495-1505 and currently in the collection of The Met Cloisters in New York. The artist has inserted a woven portrait of drug lord Pablo Escobar into the composition which then turns into a reference of the exotic collection of animals Escobar was known to have assembled at his Hacienda Nápoles.
Guadalajara, México. 9 de marzo 2021. Marcha del 8M. II de la serie Manifestantes, 2022 Cotton thread sewn on cotton canvas, high-density acrylic paint, and acrylic sealer
Manila, Filipinas, 23 de febrero 2018. Marcha para frenar la cultura de la violación, de la serie Manifestantes, 2022 Cotton thread sewn on cotton canvas, high-density acrylic paint, and acrylic sealer
These two works are part of the Manifestantes series, which begun in 2019, during feminist protests in Mexico referred to as the “glitter revolution,” when thousands of women marched against targeted violence of women, initially provoked by reports of the rape a teenage girl by the police. The artist creates portraits of protestors using thread on cotton fabric, based on images taken from social media. Red fabric and paint with white thread is used for portraits of individual women protestors and black for group portraits. Candiani describes her use of sewing as a gesture toward amplifying these representations and the outrage of these women, a form of “drawing out loud.” With the site of each specific protest identified in the titles the works, the artist’s project has grown to include feminist protests currently taking place across the world.
Tania Candiani (b. 1974, Mexico)
Lipo Front and Back, from the series Gordas, 2002–05 Acrylic paint, charcoal, and cotton thread sewn on canvas
Several works engaging the bare human body address the issues of vulnerability, identity, and societal perceptions, most dramatically represented by a gigantic diptych by Tania Candiani.Part of her Gordas series (2002-05), which focuses on the problems of women’s self-image, related to their bodies and the industries that promote idealized, unrealistically thin female physiques, this piece presents a front and a back view of the same elder-looking woman. Rendered in embroidery on canvas, the diptych is based on photographs used by plastic surgeons to mark the areas they recommend incisions to be made during liposuction procedures. The artist has instead used the markings to fill the canvas with cotton stuffing, creating a voluminous portrait of a woman submitting herself to this invasive weight-reduction process.
From left to right
Tania Candiani (b. 1974, Mexico)
Guadalajara, México. 9 de marzo 2021. Marcha del 8M. II de la serie Manifestantes, 2022 Cotton thread sewn on cotton canvas, high-density acrylic paint, and acrylic sealer
Manila, Filipinas, 23 de febrero 2018. Marcha para frenar la cultura de la violación, de la serie Manifestantes, 2022 Cotton thread sewn on cotton canvas, high-density acrylic paint, and acrylic sealer
These two works are part of the Manifestantes series, which begun in 2019, during feminist protests in Mexico referred to as the “glitter revolution,” when thousands of women marched against targeted violence of women, initially provoked by reports of the rape a teenage girl by the police. The artist creates portraits of protestors using thread on cotton fabric, based on images taken from social media. Red fabric and paint with white thread is used for portraits of individual women protestors and black for group portraits. Candiani describes her use of sewing as a gesture toward amplifying these representations and the outrage of these women, a form of “drawing out loud.” With the site of each specific protest identified in the titles the works, the artist’s project has grown to include feminist protests currently taking place across the world.
Bisa Butler (b. 1973, United States)
Mobile Madonna, 2022 Cotton, silk, wool, and velvet quilted and appliquéd
Carlos Bunga (b. 1976, Portugal)
Alfombra #12, 2023 Latex and glue on rug
James Brown (b. 1951, United States; d. 2020, Mexico)
Color Study (266), 2007 Oil on folded linen mounted on canvas
Color Study (270), 2010 Oil on folded linen mounted on canvas
From left to right
Alighiero Boetti (b. 1940, Italy; d. 1994, Italy)
Divine Astrazioni, 1987 Embroidery on canvas
Udire tra le parole (Nove quadrati), 1979 Watercolor on handmade paper
These two small works, one a watercolor and the second an embroidery on canvas, present the abstracted forms of European lettering across a checkerboard structure, creating concrete poems that are difficult to decipher. The embroidered work, titled Divine astrazioni is part of the Arazzi series which often mixed words from the artist’s native Italian with Persian, the language spoken by the Afghani women who embroidered these works for the artist.
Sanford Biggers (b. 1970, United States)
Neroluce, 2018 Antique quilt, assorted textiles, tar, and glitter
Kader Attia (b. 1970, France)
Untitled (burnt wood picture), 2007 Burnt wood and nails on wooden stretcher
Alberto Arboleda (b. 1925, Colombia; d. 2011, Belgium)
Composición blanca, 1966 Collage on board
Polly Apfelbaum (b. 1955, United States)
Wimple, 2009 Marker on synthetic velvet
Polly Apfelbaum (b. 1955, United States)
Sun Target Drawings, 2018 Gouache on paper
Leonor Antunes (b. 1972, Portugal)
random intersections # 10, 2013 Leather and brass hardware
Ghada Amer (b. 1963, Egypt)
Portrait of Kamila, 2020 Acrylic, embroidery, and gel medium on canvas
Candida Alvarez (b. 1955, United States)
Between Two Things, from Air Paintings, 2017–19 Latex ink, acrylic, and collage on PVC mesh with aluminum and wood
(back side)
EtelAdnan(b. 1925, Lebanon; d. 2021, France)
Avril, 2017 Wool tapestry
EtelAdnan(b. 1925, Lebanon; d. 2021, France)
Untitled, 2014 Oil on canvas
EtelAdnan(b. 1925, Lebanon; d. 2021, France)
Planète, 2020 Oil on canvas
Igshaan Adams (b. 1982, South Africa)
Akbar, 2017 Nylon rope, cotton thread, and beads
The title of Igshaan Adams’ Akbar is an Arabic male name, a reference that addresses the South African artist’s Muslim faith. A queer artist who was born of a Muslim father and raised by his Christian grandmother, Adam’s elaborate textiles address the diverse cultural and spiritual contexts that continue to form his identity. The artist has embraced Islamic spirituality and particularly Sufism, and his works might be read as enlarged prayer rugs. This is particularly felt with the second piece in this gallery, titled Theshold II, whose symmetrically woven forms recall the floral patterning of Islamic carpets and their references to a garden paradise. The large central opening in this beaded piece, combined with its title speak to intersections between material and spiritual realms.