Silk and Metal thread embroidered on Silk (1850-1875)
Neusteter Textile Collection: Gift of James P. Grant and Betty Grant Austin
By Miss Hazard.
“Femme Fierce, the largest all-female street art event in the UK is dedicated to unearthing and highlighting the best of the burgeoning female artists on the street art scene. Coinciding with International Women’s Week, Femme Fierce is a celebration of women that create art in studios, lurk in dark alleyways, scale roof tops, enter abandoned buildings and add colour to the grey concrete walls that make up our cityscape for the love of the covert and oft-maligned world of street art and graffiti.” Femme Fierce.
In Leake Street Tunnel, south London, England.
Who: Rossi Rossi ~ London Gallery
When: June 27, 2014 – July 25, 2014 (Mon-Sat. 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.)
Where:
ASIA HOUSE
63 NEW CAVENDISH STREET
LONDON W1G 7LP
How Much: Reservations recommended with information on their website.
More Information: Here
“Rossi & Rossi is pleased to announce Hell on Earth, contemporary Cambodian artist Leang Seckon’s second solo show with the gallery. The exhibition, held at Asia House, London, features a body of recent paintings, collages and video works by the artist.
Seckon grew up during the devastating period of Khmer Rouge rule, witnessing firsthand the government-enforced policies that led to famine and disease, as well as state executions. He describes this period as “hell on earth”, when the haunting prophecies found in a set of popular nineteenth-century Buddhist texts, the Buddh Damnay, were realized: “war will break out on all sides…blood will flow up to the bellies of elephants; there will be houses with no people in them, roads upon which no-one travels; there will be rice but nothing to eat”. The prophecies provided Cambodians with an explanation for the violence and destruction of the Khmer Rouge, placing the period within the cyclical pattern of Buddhist history.
The artist’s collages and paintings are intimate narratives of his memories from the period and the civil war that followed. The process of creating artworks simultaneously allows him to experience and express the freedom that was denied to him as a youth. However, Seckon’s work also acts as a warning: like the Buddh Damnay, it cautions against corruption and the destruction of the environment, drawing parallels between Cambodia’s present and its past.
A fully illustrated catalogue with an essay by renowned curator Jens Hoffmann accompanies the exhibition.
On 28 June, Leang Seckon will be joined by Dr. Peter Sharrock (SOAS) to discuss the artist’s approaches to his work and the impact of Cambodia’s turbulent and complex history on his practice. The talk is free to attend, however seat reservations are recommended. To reserve a seat please visit: leangseckon.eventbrite.co.uk.”
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An ancient burial containing chariots, gold artifacts and possible human sacrifices has been discovered by archaeologists in the country of Georgia, in the south Caucasus. (more…)
As we drove down the tree lined streets, we passed rows of tiny, one-floor houses that sat just yards away from the road side. I watched through the window as children scurried from one side of the road to the other, playing what appeared to be a game of tag. Women, dressed in brightly colored textiles, were gathered at the corner of one street, watching their children, gossiping.
We were headed to meet Gurban, a local carpet dealer, at his house in Ashgabat. My husband and I had flown to Turkmenistan for a long weekend.
While many regions along the Silk Road produce unique carpets, Turkmen rugs have become well known in the West, due to their high quality and beauty. The art of carpet weaving has been handed down from generation to generation and is central to the Turkmen culture. Each tribe has its own specific patterns and symbols which represent aspects of life which hold great importance.Since moving to Central Asia, our friends had repeatedly advised us, “You must visit Ashgabat if you have the chance – it is like nothing you’ve ever experienced or are likely to experience again.” Part of this fascination with Turkmenistan comes from the unique political system and president who posts his portrait on every available wall space in the city. But the bigger allure for us was the chance to explore a land with ancient cultures and traditions that was once part of the Silk Road.
The Silk Road runs through Central Asia and was a major trading route connecting the West to the East for hundreds of years. In fact, it was the famed traveler, Marco Polo who was the first to mention Turkmen carpets in the 13th century.
Gurban and his family have been selling Turkmen carpets for years from their house and in the Tolkuchka bazaar (the Sunday market). As we entered a Spartan yet beautiful courtyard, a sea of carpets covered the concrete floor. The deep red and orange rugs gave such an aura of warmth it was hard to not feel immediately welcomed into their home.
Gurban invited us into his house for lunch and offered us a feast of chicken, plov (traditional Central Asian rice dish) fruit, fresh juices and tea. We sat on the floor, chatting with our new friends. The smaller children played hide and seek with us, peeking their heads in the door, smiling and flirting. In the corner of the room a black and white television played a video-tape of a recent family wedding. The new bride now sat beside us, holding her new born child and pregnant with her second.
The Cultured Muse 