
A Magical Expedition 12” x 12” Art Quilt 2024
Created as part of my SAQA KS/MO/OK Regional Exhibition in 2024, inspired by the living-language-land project (at living-language-land.org). That project, devised by a small group based out of the UK, involved people in other countries around the world. The result was a set of 26 words from endangered and minority languages, contributed by members of indigenous communities.
Their goal was to reveal different ways of relating to land and nature, and enlarge the lexicon we can all draw from in reflecting on those relationships. The project was related to COP26 (a series of annual global climate negotiations under the umbrella of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC)), with a hope of giving a global audience fresh inspiration for our environmental crisis.
We were asked to select a word and create one or more art quilts inspired by that word, based on our own research, experiences and creative voice. Works could be a combination of 12” and/or 24”, either 2D or 3D.
This art quilt, A Magical Expedition . Inspired by the word: IXau: to shoot with a magical arrow or go on a magical expedition. Word Origin: |Xam Bushman, Southern Africa. Word Contributor: Sylvia Vollenhoven, Virginia MacKenny and collaborators.
The Bushman used this word to describe mystical journeys (mystical arrows) to restore their connection with the earth. However, when I think of magical arrows and mystical journeys, my imagination takes me to more of a fantasy world, full of colorful creatures and adventures. Thus, my character IXau, with her magical arrow, her bandolier of pouches and her bright scarf, traveling a mystical world on her own adventure. Oh, the stories she could tell!
Commercial fabric, polyester batting, cotton/poly & monofilament thread, pigments, satin cording. I used raw-edge applique and my Pigment Patchwork techniques to create this work.