Aquatic Insurrection c. 2015–2020

Resin casting & laser-cut stainless steel — suspended aquatic creatures; installation, dimensions variable (each creature W 36 × H 18 × L 18 cm)

Resin-cast, laser-cut stainless-steel aquatic creatures, suspended on filament so they appear to swim through the gallery. It is a comment on hydropolitics — the precarious future of water, which, as fresh water grows scarce, becomes an increasing source of global conflict.

All aquatic life has been affected by high concentrations of pollutants — heavy metals and chemicals — in rivers, streams and oceans. The creatures, armed with implements used as weapons in human conflict, have evolved out of the toxic sludge to defend their waning territory: both tragic and absurd, drawn from the ‘sublime of delightful horror’ — the simultaneous aversion and attraction of the terrifying.

Shown over the felted ‘seabed’ of Litany at the Oliewenhuis Museum, Bloemfontein.

More in Installation

More in Fibre Art

Mycoremediation — Celia de VilliersMycoremediation2022 · Fibre sculpture — reclaimed textiles, fibre and nettingLiminal Rite — Celia de VilliersLiminal Ritec. 2010 · Hand-dyed textiles and yarns; hand and machine embroideryDisavowal — Celia de VilliersDisavowal2005–2006 · Polyurethane, velvet, suede, fake fur & latexResonance — Celia de VilliersResonancec. 2006 · Sculpted hand-dyed felt, hand & machine embroidery, biodegradable fibresFragile Negotiations — Celia de VilliersFragile Negotiations2025 · Eco-dyed, botanically-printed biodegradable & up-cycled fibre; knotting, weaving, felting & embroiderySaudade Bahia — Celia de VilliersSaudade Bahia2004 · Found jetsam and flotsam — fishing net, weathered textiles, jute, plastic and plant material with a found sewing machine; over-dyed, embroidered, woven, crocheted and knittedCloak for a Shaman — Celia de VilliersCloak for a Shaman2008 · Embroidery, felt, fibre, quilting & woolLitany — Celia de VilliersLitanyc. 2015–2020 · Hand-dyed commercial, organic and synthetic textiles and yarns — hand-weaving, knitting and felting; hand and machine embroidery; rusted 19th-century pressed-ceiling panels, wire and PET plastic. W 300 × H 200 × D 200 cmThe Big 6 — Celia de VilliersThe Big 62001 · Embossed leather, collaged textile, heat-screened newsprint & machine embroidery; five suspended life-size figuresRe-rooting — Celia de VilliersRe-rooting2021 · Cement bag, denim, chiffon & guipure laceRegeneration — Celia de VilliersRegenerationc. 1998 · Giraffe & hippo bone, bandages, threads & drawings on silkLichenipolystoechotes — Celia de VilliersLichenipolystoechotes2022 · Eco-dyed wool & fibre, stitch; installationLove Potion — Celia de VilliersLove Potion2022 · Embroidery & textile; each heart 15 × 10 cmOrchidelirium and Other Obsessions — Celia de VilliersOrchidelirium and Other Obsessions2024 · Eco-dyed wool, felt, embroidery & fibreBeyond an Inferno — Celia de VilliersBeyond an Inferno2020 · Fibre, embroidery & stitched textile with charred found objects from the 2017 wildfires; drawing on dyed silk
 
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