MAY 16, 2024 KATE MOTHES
“Inner Elder (Nina Simone as Queen of Sheba)” (2023), ceramic, 39 3/8 x 23 5/8 x 23 5/8 inches. Photo by Jonti Wilde. All images © Tavares Strachan, courtesy of Marian Goodman Gallery
In his recent exhibition, Tavares Strachan positioned ‘The Encyclopedia of Invisibility’ like a nucleus around which all other installations revolved.
In 1887, an African-American man named Matthew Henson was hired by U.S. Navy engineer Robert Peary to accompany a team of explorers to be the first to navigate to the Geographic North Pole. On April 6, 1909, after several failed attempts, Henson was the first to arrive with the help of Inuit guides, but Peary—whose records were later interrogated and found to contain discrepancies—was credited with the achievement for a century.
Left: “Makeda (A Map of the Crown)” (2024), marble, flocked hair, 19 3/8 x 16 1/2 x 12 3/4 inches. Photo by Elon Schoenholz. Right: “Inner Elder (Biko as Septimius Severus)” (2023), ceramic, 39 3/8 x 23 5/8 x 23 5/8 inches. Photo by Jonti Wilde
And then there’s Andrea Motley Crabtree, the U.S. Army’s first female deep-sea diver and the first African-American female deep-sea diver in any branch of the country’s military service. While lauded as a trailblazer, she recounts a 21-year career marred by prejudice and considerable racist and misogynist hazing.
Installation view. Left: “Matthew Henson (Hunter’s Shirt Stacked with Football and Spear)” (2023), ceramic, 78 3/4 x 35 3/8 x 15 3/4 inches. Right: “Andrea Crabtree (Potter’s Shirt Stacked with Diver’s Helmet)” (2023), ceramic, 70 7/8 x 35 3/8 x 15 3/4 inches. Photo by Elon Schoenholz
Figures like Henson and Crabtree appear often in Tavares Strachan’s multimedia installations and sculptures (previously). His ongoing series The Encyclopedia of Invisibility first came to fruition in 2018 as a 2,400-page book, containing 15,000 entries on subjects omitted from the Encyclopedia Britannica—an authority on history.
In his recent large-scale, immersive exhibition Magnificent Darkness with Marian Goodman Gallery in Los Angeles, Strachan positioned The Encyclopedia of Invisibility like a nucleus around which all other installations revolved. He even included a “pocket” edition of the book on a bespoke acrylic stand that doubled as a container for a pair of white gloves.
In one installation, “Matthew Henson (Hunter’s Shirt Stacked with Football and Spear)” stands adjacent to “Andrea Crabtree (Potter’s Shirt Stacked with Diver’s Helmet),” both homages to their respective subjects, situated like timeless totems in a desert-like expanse. In another arrangement, busts of legendary African queens like Amanirenas, Moremi Ajasoro, and Makeda—the Ethiopian name for the Queen of Sheba—are carved from marble. Adorning the works with real, flocked hair, Strachan venerates both ancient historical figures and Black hair itself. […]
Installation view of Tavares Strachan, ‘Magnificent Darkness,’ at Marian Goodman Gallery, Los Angeles, 2024. Photo by Elon Schoenholz
We set out to solve why a forest in the middle of Uruguay looked like that — and wound up finding something much bigger.
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Deep in the geographic center of Uruguay, there’s a peculiar group of trees just a few kilometers down the road from the small town of San Gregorio de Polanco. From the ground, it’s not particularly notable. But from above, the view is mind-boggling: Hundreds of trees are arranged in perfect concentric arcs, all spiraling toward the center. Together, they look remarkably like a human fingerprint.
When we first saw this forest in a Reddit post, we were fascinated. Why had the trees been arranged in this shape? Who planted them there? And why — when you zoom out on satellite view — was the entire country of Uruguay covered in similar-looking forests? To answer that question, we went straight to the source: interviewing locals, experts, and people whose lives have been shaped by a transformed landscape and economy.
Further reading:
Read the text of the original “forestry law”: https://www.impo.com.uy/bases/leyes/1…
Read some of Alexandra’s work on afforestation and wildlife: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science…
Eilís O’Neill has a great feature in the Nation on Uruguay’s forestry industry: https://www.thenation.com/article/arc…
More stories about residents affected by the railway construction: https://yle.fi/a/3-11756418
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[…]
Welcome, me hearties, to another episode of Words Unravelled. In this edition, Rob and Jess discuss nautical terms and pirate slang.
💩 What’s so poopy about a poop deck?
🏴☠️ What does it mean to “shiver” someone’s timbers?
⚓️ Which English idioms come from the high seas?
Find out in Words Unravelled!
👂LISTEN: https://podfollow.com/words-unravelle…
or search for “Words Unravelled” wherever you get your podcasts.
==LINKS==
Video about nautical idioms that Rob mentioned:
• 8 Sailing Expressions You Use Everyda…
Rob’s YouTube channel:
/ robwords
Jess’ Useless Etymology blog: https://uselessetymology.com/
Rob on X: x.com/robwordsyt
Jess on TikTok: tiktok.com/@jesszafarris
#etymology #pirates #English
[…]
MAY 15, 2024 KATE MOTHES
Photos by Alice Walker. All images © Jessica Saunders
Essex-based artist Jessica Saunders’ delicate stained glass sculptures highlight an array of familiar and beloved blooms.
“Flowers are connecting, grounding, uplifting, healing, and worth treasuring,” says Essex-based artist Jessica Saunders, whose delicate stained glass sculptures highlight an array of familiar and beloved blooms. From daffodils and poppies to cornflowers and hydrangeas, her pieces celebrate the cyclical nature of the seasons and the incredible range of specimens in both our backyards and the wild.
For Saunders, inspiration comes from her own garden and walks outside with her dog Bramble, observing the gradual changes in blossoms and foliage throughout the year. She also builds upon stories people share with her about specific flowers that evoke memories of others or places they’ve visited, which can be captured in glass as an everlasting reminder.
Saunders began working with stained glass in 2020 when her partner gifted her a beginners’ guide to the practice. “I immediately fell head over heels in love with the process,” the artist tells Colossal. “It felt natural to use my hands this way, and understanding all the different techniques came easily.” She enjoyed the challenges and possibilities of the medium, intrigued by its colors, textures, and transparency, in addition to its ability to be endlessly recycled. […]
More: Seasonal Blooms Capture Sunlight in Jessica Saunders’ Delicate Stained Glass Sculptures — Colossal
