This piece pays homage to African ancestors who were kidnapped, passed or survived the brutality of the slave dungeons in West Africa operated by European colonizers. This piece pays homage to African ancestors who passed or survived the terror of the middle passage, and those who passed or survived their displacement, horror and enslavement in the Americas and Europe during the Transatlantic Slave Trade. This piece pays homage to African ancestors who were able to build communities, based on foundational elements of African culture and spirituality, both during their enslavement and after their emancipation.
The piece also pays homage to a forgotten fracture in history, the Indian Ocean Slave Trade (a.k.a. Arab Slave Trade). The Indian Ocean Slave Trade must be acknowledged and remembered as the second trade where Africans were kidnapped from Central, Eastern and Southern Africa and enslaved in the Middle East and Asia. This trade was most active in the 18th and 19th centuries.
The colours chosen for this piece include red/orange, yellow, green and blue. The red/orange represents the blood of the captured and enslaved Africans whose lives were lost, blue represents the waters crossed during both Transatlantic and Indian Ocean Slave Trades. The blue also signifies the dual and complex relationship African ancestors and their descendants have engendered about the water, the taker and giver of life. The yellow symbolizes natural resources of the continent such as gold. Yellow also represent some of the food African ancestors would survive on and cultivate, like yellow yam, casava, corn, banana and plantain. The green represents the lands left on the continent and the lands that were inhabited and cultivated by African ancestors, making agriculture the most important economic driver on many of the lands on African and the African diaspora to this day.
Each textile is handmade and may have subtle differences in its appearance. It is recommended to dry clean to maintain the vibrancy of the colours.
This piece pays homage to African ancestors who were kidnapped, passed or survived the brutality of the slave dungeons in West Africa operated by European colonizers. This piece pays homage to African ancestors who passed or survived the terror of the middle passage, and those who passed or survived their displacement, horror and enslavement in the Americas and Europe during the Transatlantic Slave Trade. This piece pays homage to African ancestors who were able to build communities, based on foundational elements of African culture and spirituality, both during their enslavement and after their emancipation.
The piece also pays homage to a forgotten fracture in history, the Indian Ocean Slave Trade (a.k.a. Arab Slave Trade). The Indian Ocean Slave Trade must be acknowledged and remembered as the second trade where Africans were kidnapped from Central, Eastern and Southern Africa and enslaved in the Middle East and Asia. This trade was most active in the 18th and 19th centuries.
The colours chosen for this piece include red/orange, yellow, green and blue. The red/orange represents the blood of the captured and enslaved Africans whose lives were lost, blue represents the waters crossed during both Transatlantic and Indian Ocean Slave Trades. The blue also signifies the dual and complex relationship African ancestors and their descendants have engendered about the water, the taker and giver of life. The yellow symbolizes natural resources of the continent such as gold. Yellow also represent some of the food African ancestors would survive on and cultivate, like yellow yam, casava, corn, banana and plantain. The green represents the lands left on the continent and the lands that were inhabited and cultivated by African ancestors, making agriculture the most important economic driver on many of the lands on African and the African diaspora to this day.
Each textile is handmade and may have subtle differences in its appearance. It is recommended to dry clean to maintain the vibrancy of the colours.