Nicholas Hlobo's two pieces at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Inkwili
and Tyaphaka, 2011 are quite exquisite. They connect to
an earthiness that longs for the simplicity that making provides. He
works with paper, stitching hand dyed pieces together with ribbon,
creating a patterning of coloured tracks that link the undulating
pieces together to create a topography; a country, a place.
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| Detail of Inkwili by Nicholas Hlobo |
There is a nostalgia in this tea
stained mapping. The stitching reminds me of the baskets my
grandmother made. Hole punched recycled christmas cards sewed
together to make something decorative and functional. It was also
something that contained stories and narrative just like Hlobo's
work.
Rich, warm colours, rivers and ridges
are all visible in a piece that conveys so much. We can feel his
story, his country - South Africa.
