Inherited threads
Mixed media
8,5 cm x 42 cm x 17,5 cm
ARTIST’S STATEMENT
This artwork speaks to my personal and familial identity by reflecting on my heritage as both Cape Coloured and Cape Malay.
This artwork makes use of paper lithography and calligraphy to depict three generations dressed in traditional attire, creating a dialogue between the past and present. By layering dompas photographs and maps, I confront legacies of displacement and oppression, mapping both the emotional and physical landscapes my ancestors navigated. My great-grandfather’s photographic negatives are layered over the figures, deepening the connection between generations. This sparked a deep curiosity about my family’s past and the forces that shaped it.
The use of thread becomes symbolic in this exploration. Through the stitching, I actively engage in binding the past and present together. The blanket stitch – a technique passed down through generations – serves as a metaphorical thread binding fragmented histories. The blue and purple threads represent my Cape Malay lineage, while the light brown signifies the Cape Coloured side of my family. I use dark brown thread in a self-portrait symbolising the merging of these two identities, embodying the entanglement of belonging to both.
Fading elements are purposefully incorporated into the prints, reflecting on the fragile and transient nature of memory, much like the stories I heard about family members I never met. These faded forms speak to the incomplete yet cherished fragments of personal history that we cling to. This makes this artwork an interactive piece by placing the colour-coded prints into the boxes they belong to.
Through this work, I honour my lineage by reclaiming the narratives of the past as a young Coloured woman.