Is it true that everything new is a long-forgotten old?
Perhaps it is.
Every book ever written resembles another book on the other end of the Earth, and every melody contains the same tunes and notes as thousands of other melodies.
What about art? Does it all resemble itself? Today, modern artists more and more frequently go back to their roots when creating art and reviving traditional techniques in contemporary art.
I do not know about you, but I find it precious.
The tiny threads that connect us with our ancestors, the grains of almost lost inheritance, find their expression in art intertwined with modern approaches in the most fascinating ways. Incorporating traditional images or approaches helps artists preserve culture while unfolding it in a previously unknown form. Luckily, many artists today treat tradition as a way to enrich their art, not as something that might overshadow their talent.
What are the reasons behind the growing popularity of traditional motives and techniques in contemporary art?
Let’s dig in and explore the beautiful artists around the globe who revive traditional patterns in their art, reminding us that everything can be art if we look at the right angle.
''Cultural Heritage''
In a world where being an artist becomes harder each day, especially with AI coming into the arena, people start valuing uniqueness more. Mass production is affordable but no longer attractive. Therefore, artists try to emphasise the uniqueness of human labour by recreating traditional patterns and using traditional techniques.
Diedrick Brackens is an American artist with an African heritage who proves that craft is art by creating cotton tapestries containing the stories of African Americans.
While the digital presence of art makes it accessible to everyone, artists nowadays strive to leave their footprints by providing people with tactical experience.
Brackens specialises in weaving, mainly using cotton, because it is a reliable, relatively cheap, and natural material. The artist also thinks that using natural cotton pays tribute to all the African people who worked hard with cotton under drastically different circumstances, and his work is an attempt to tell the stories of these people because they deserve to be seen and heard.
Sustainability
What makes art even more valuable and rare is the sustainable approach artists choose when using locally sourced materials or preferring manual techniques over equipment.
The imperfection of handmade adds soul and originality to each art piece, making us stare at it for hours, fascinated and curious about how a human hand could create something so complex and harmonic.
An outstanding example of an artist who seamlessly combines tradition, culture and a sustainable approach is a Ghanaian sculptor, El Anatsui, whose art continues to captivate art lovers for more than six decades.
The public knows and appreciates his remarkable works because of his ability to highlight and raise awareness with installations made from nothing. When creating his astonishing sculptures, he prefers to use materials that other people would consider rubbish, such as plastic bottles, caps, newspapers, etc. With this approach, he raises sustainability issues, presenting people with the amount of discarded products, invoking us to act and fight against consumerism. While the facade advocates for ecology and recycling, the installations themselves tell the stories of colonialism and educate us about African heritage.
In El Anatsui's work, Earth’s Skin, the tapestry is made of bottle caps sewn together, creating vibrant, eye-catching patterns that resemble West African textile practices.
The liquor caps as a primary material might seem a controversial choice, but the artist chose them for a reason. Liquor came to his country with colonialism, and its production boosted the slave trade, shaping the history of the continent and leaving the scars that El Anatsui proudly embraced
.
Choosing liquor caps in his tapestry represents the remains of colonialism, of what was left after the conquerors. By using those, El Anatsui showed us that the beautiful history of West Africa can be told despite the ugliness and hardships it endured.
Something can still be mesmerising and breathtaking, and even if it is under a closer look,
is nothing but a cap. Made from an old wooden tray, contains traditional symbols from Ghanaian textiles.
Narrative and public message
We, modern people, are guilty of forgetting certain things that should always be honoured and remembered. Art helps us to perpetuate stories in time, where every thread, every smear of paint, and every curve can tell us a story of a nation, bring us back in time and make us immersed in history.
Art is an escape from reality, but sometimes, it is the most powerful tool for those in fear to share their stories and draw the public’s attention.
Art is a refugee for those sent to exile, speaking louder than words ever could.
Ai Weiwei is an artist with a purpose; he uses his craftsmanship to bring justice and discuss his political views, where his bravery and talent crash the walls of ignorance and fear.
In his works, he uses natural materials representing the wealthiest history of Chinese craftsmanship, including wood and porcelain.
Porcelain has been associated with China for centuries, with everyone knowing there are no better masters elsewhere.
Ai Weiwei’s famous work “Sunflowers Seeds” was first presented at Tate Modern in 2010 and symbolised the people of China and optimism during harsh times.
Each seed was hand-crafted by the finest Chinese masters and differentiated from one another.
When you pick one, you may see how unique each seed is, but looking from afar, they look the same. This symbolism represents the people of China, where personalities were lost due to the regime, demanding people not to stand out. This installation tells the story of censorship and communism while also emphasizing the vastness and uniqueness of China.
With artists coming back to traditional techniques and locally sourced materials, we, art enthusiasts, have a chance to glance at various cultures and learn stories of long-gone people through the prism of modernity.
Art has always been heavily influenced by traditions and served as an escape for those seeking freedom.
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