Installations
From the 8th of September to the 24th of November, Manifesta 15 Barcelona Metropolitana presented a comprehensive programme featuring installations, archives and performances by the participants of the edition.
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Dïà s p o r a
- TypeInstallation
- ParticipantBinta Diaw
- VenueCan Trinxet
Dïà s p o r a, 2021 - 2024 © Binta Diaw. Photo © Manifesta 15 Barcelona Metropolitana / Cecília Coca
Hair braiding amongst African women caught up in the Atlantic slave trade can be considered a practice of resistance. More than ornamental, enslaved women are known to have braided escape routes (paths to freedom) into one another’s hair. Furthermore, hair braiding was also a way for these women to remain connected to their homeland; before they were forcibly taken to the Americas, they wove rice into their locks – a discrete storage practice born of duress and a symbol of resistance against slavery. It was in this way that they carried a piece of home with them, which they planted upon arrival in the so-called “new world”. The Italian-Senegalese artist Binta Diaw has summoned this tradition while creating her monumental installation, for which she has invited members of the African diaspora in L’Hospitalet de Llobregat to weave together long braids of synthetic hair. While weaving, the participants shared personal histories from the past and present, developing solidarity. Diaw’s conjuring of this tradition serves to focus attention on Afro-diasporic and feminist experiences in Catalonia, prompting reflection on how Black female bodies are represented and interpreted.
Dïà s p o r a, 2021 - 2024 © Binta Diaw. Photo © Manifesta 15 Barcelona Metropolitana / Cecília Coca
2021-2024
Hair extensions, rice plants
Dimensions variable
Courtesy of the artist
Adaptation of existing work specifically for Manifesta 15 Barcelona Metropolitana
Supported by Ammodo, Fundación Daniel y Nina Carasso and Ajuntament de L'Hospitalet
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