joseph scissorhands: Yinka Shonibare: Suspended States

Yinka Shonibare CBE - Decolonised Structures (Kitchener)

To the Serpentine Gallery to see this first show by the artist Yinka Shonibare at a major London institution in over 20 years. There were very similar works on display to that of his gallery show at Stephen Friedman Gallery on Cork Street last October (here). Greeting visitors at the entrance to this exhibition was one of the artists bronze Wind sculptures of a billowing cloth dancing in the wind, decorated in Shonibare's signature Dutch wax pattern designs inspired by the Indonesian batik decoration technique, industrially produced in the Netherlands and then sold in Africa. These African fabric patterns also feature on his Decolonised Structures series statues. This series takes as its starting point the larger than life statues of renowned Western historical figures dotted around the capital whose legacies are viewed as being quite controversial and problematic today. One recalls the shocking images of 2020 when protesters in Bristol pulled down the statue of slave trader/philanphropist Edward Colston rolled it through the streets and then threw it in the harbour after years of calling for it to be removed. Shonibare recreates replica statues of these divisive figures such as Churchill, Clive of India and Lord Kitchener in fibreglass at a smaller, more human scale than the original statues, literally cutting these figures and their reputations down to size, and again covers them in hand-painted Dutch wax print patterns, which like camouflage seems to disrupt the surface and outlines of the statues, softening the severity of both these historical figures and their reputations. The African patterned fabric is also employed on the covers of a library of books in one gallery room in an ambitious installation entitled The War Library. This consists of over 5000 books the spines of which are embossed with gold lettering naming current and historical conflicts and peace treaties and others with spines left empty hinting at conflicts to come. The library reflects upon how global conflicts are viewed subjectively depending on the stance of the aggressors and those seeking to defend their territory. The one surprise for me here, and a new addition to Shonibare's oeuvre is contained within the darkened central gallery of the Serpentine, and is entitled Sanctuary City. This consists of 17 small-scale black replica models of contemporary and historical buildings that have been used as refuges for vulnerable persons and those fleeing persecution. These little buildings were lit from within as if they were beacons of hope for the dispossessed. Again, within these little blackened buildings were swatches of Shonibare's signature African fabrics providing vibrant flashes of colour perhaps symbolising hope in the darkness. Personal favourites on display here included the African Bird Magic textile series juxtaposing African masks against endangered bird species native to Africa. The masks symbolise ancestors who were the keepers of the birds habitat before the arrival of colonial systems which sought to exploit and deplete the riches of the land, negatively affecting the ecology.

Wind Sculpture in Bronze IV

"I realised the significance of the wind for the diaspora and the enslavement of people. Looking at the sails, I realised that I could develop that into more abstract forms. " - Yinka Shonibare CBE

African Bird Magic (Mauritius Fody & Comoro Blue Vanga)

"These masks become symbols of African empowerment to challenge the consequences of Western colonial industrialisation in the degradation of the African environment" - Yinka Shonibare CBE

The War Library

"We've had so many of these conflicts, and we've had so many peace treaties... Do we learn anything from them, or do we just carry on the catastrophe?" - Yinka Shonibare CBE

Sanctuary City

"I was interested in how we start to think about sanctuary in relation to homelessness, shelter for women and refugees." - Yinka Shonibare CBE

Decolonised Structures

"I don't think statues should be destroyed, the public should be able to see them, but there should be be museums built for them so people can understand the history of these people and what they did. Here the sculptures are reduced in size and deliberately bought to eye level to metaphorically reduce (their) grandeur... (and) power over citizens.' - Yinka Shonibare CBE