Description
In this work, Rut Olabarri transforms a textile garment into a narrative support filled with scenes and visual fragments. On a dark, densely textured mantle, the artist arranges a constellation of painted figures, small objects, and sewn elements that seem to float or hang from fine golden threads.
Among the depicted motifs are portraits, masks, historical and fictional characters, teacups and teapots, fragments of sculptural figures, and small imaginary architectures. These elements are distributed across the surface as if forming a system of interconnected associations or memories.
The recurring presence of tea-related objects—cups, jugs, and utensils—introduces a domestic and ritual dimension, while the faces and characters evoke stories, identities, and cultural references that seem to intertwine within a single visual narrative. The arrangement of elements resembles a mental map or a theater of ideas, where each image functions as a fragment of storytelling.
The combined use of painting on textile, embroidery, pompoms, and small objects creates a dialogue between the two-dimensional and three-dimensional, enhancing the materiality of the piece. The mantle’s surface becomes a hybrid territory between tapestry, collage, and soft sculpture.
In Rut Olabarri’s artistic practice, textiles act as a medium for constructing visual narratives in which memory, history, and material culture intertwine. This work functions as a kind of poetic archive or symbolic mantle that invites the viewer to explore its multiple stories and connections.
This post is also available in: Spanish
