Alexandra Kehayoglou is a Greek- Argentinean textile
artist. She has been active since 2008 and has presented her artwork in various exhibitions around the world. In 2017, under the umbrella of Greek artists exhibiting their work in New York, she has been commissioned by Onassis Foundation (founded and named after Aristotle Onassis, the famous Greek-Argentinean shipping magnate) to bring her own view inspired
by the story of Antigone—a teenager who sets out to do what she believes in
morally right—and creates provocative installations that serve as platforms for
reflection and discussion. Kehayoglou considers the balance between natural and
civic law in an intricate topographical tapestry.
Repoussoir for a New Perspective,
Kehayoglou’s installation on the Art Wall in the
Olympic Tower Atrium is a multi-part hand-woven sculptural tapestry, 23 x 8’.
Executed in earth tones using tufted wool—discarded thread from her family’s
carpet factory in Buenos Aires—the sculptural form represents the cave
formations and volcanic activity that produces intricate outcroppings and
patterns in the landscape on the Greek island of Milos in Cyclades, Greece. The
minerals being extracted from this fragile ecosystem for industrial use are
currently in danger of vanishing. The work reveals how the artist
weaves tragedy into her practice as she explores the nexus of natural (moral)
and human-made law like Antigone’s story does.
According to Britannica, repoussé is a method of decorating
metals in which parts of the design are raised in relief from the back or
the inside of the article using hammers and punches; definition and detail can
then be added from the front by chasing or engraving. The name repoussé is derived from
the French pousser, “to push forward.” This ancient technique,
which has been used extensively throughout the history of metalworking,
achieved widespread popularity in Europe during the 16th, 17th, and 18th
centuries. Repoussoir on the other side is a technique in painting, printmaking, photography, or even in metalwork. It has the same origin, French, meaning pushback, and refers to compositional techniques used to make the distant parts of an image look further away and deeper into the picture.
Utilizing this technique, Alexandra Kehayoglou is trying to
get the viewer to concentrate on the piece of the tapestry that stands out: the
the landscape of the island being carved by the elements and human activity. Her
medium is textiles: a very versatile and flexible material, that can be very
easily manipulated, knitted, weaved, or stitched onto. Having the ability to
utilize and apply any possible colour, the tapestry, and the blanket becomes a canvas
where the structure reveals the island’s volcanic scenery, surrounded by
the magnificent blue of the Aegean Sea.
Kehayoglou tends to create larger-scale carpets in the form of a landscape. The
carpet itself is a conductor, a channel. It runs over walls, but it also can
be walked onto forming a physical and interactive experience for the user
and spectator. The work’s larger scale also emphasizes the texture and surface. When one’s body touches the soft woolly elements of the carpet it automatically becomes bonded with it. It creates a feeling of cosiness and comfort. It feels like home; that is what Kehayoglou is trying to achieve with the use of textiles. She is creating a bond with the audience
through her commonly used medium and its qualities.
As a decorative element, the carpet tends to transform the occupying space. With its colourful qualities, it becomes a feature and a celebration of most of the senses; vision, touch, and scent. These elements have been transferred from its very minimum elements: wool tends to be odourless but when it is washed to soften down, it becomes soft and versatile. The raw material is easy to use but needs skill and experience to employ its qualities to its full potential.
Creating pieces on such a scale requires a lot of skill, precision, craftsmanship
as well as patience, and time. Utilizing leftovers from her family
carpet business, discontinued dye lots, scrap yarn, or unwanted colours and applying them on a surface to create a 3dimentional landscape, has resulted a work impossible to be replicated. This fact underlines the fascinating feeling
of experiencing a one-of-a-kind piece, the product of the genius of an artist who
was improvising according to the materials and the workforce available at the time; But in my opinion, to appreciate Kehayoglou’s work is to zoom into it and be captured by the attention to detail and the true replication of the topography of the terrain it represents.
Most of Milos Island’s mines have been abandoned after being exploited since antiquity. What has been left behind is a land full of scars, manipulated by human activity. Milo’s story can be linked with another tragic one: the sovereign island state of Nauru. For about a century since 1899, the whole island had been heavily mined causing a huge environmental catastrophe. In fact, 80 percent of the island has been stripped, with the deposits of mines being exhausted by the year 2000. Unluckily for Nauru, the island’s resources and profits were not beneficial for its habitants. Milos still contains minerals, but because of people’s awareness and touristic activity, the island has managed to reduce or even eliminate mining activities.
Going back to the original idea, the myth of Antigone who defied the law and followed her morals, I can see Alexandra Kehayoglou’s vision and link of the story creating a chain reaction and resulting in her artwork. Milos has been a cause of debate, the battlefield between two opposite creeds. It is greed against balance: a balance that comes from a world of respect and understanding. Respect for the environment, and consideration about the whole world surrounding us. Understanding because in absence of it we will not be able to see that without our awareness and action, we will have more Nauru cases with fatal results for humanity.
References:
Alexandra Kehayoglou. (2022). Biography. Retrieved from
https://alexandrakehayoglou.com/BIOGRAPHY
ARTFIXdaily.com. (2016). ONASSIS CULTURAL CENTER NEW YORK PRESENTS NEW COMMISSIONS BY THREE INTERNATIONALLY RECOGNIZED ARTISTS IN NYC
from https://www.artfixdaily.com/artwire/release/7868-onassis-cultural-center-new-york-presents-new-commissions-by-thre
Milos Mining Museum. (1998). The Mining History of the Island of Milos: John N. Economopoulos,[Brochure].
Milos Mining Museum. (2018). 20 Years Mining museum 1998-2018: Dr. Eleftheria Dimou-Chonianaki [Brochure].
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “repoussé”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 9 Feb. 2018, https://www.britannica.com/art/repousse. Accessed 12 December 2022.
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “relief”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 3 Oct. 2019, https://www.britannica.com/art/relief-sculpture. Accessed 12 December 2022.
Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “chasing”. Encyclopedia Britannica, 20 Jul. 1998, https://www.britannica.com/art/chasing. Accessed 12 December 2022.
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