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A White Carpet Flies Around the World
Performance and Temporary Installation project, size; 150 cm x 3455 cm collaboration with Katowice Street Art Air, © Kavachi, 2018. During the residency in Katowice, Kavachi discovered the deep connection of the city and its people to the tradition of mining. Due to their unique, industrial past, Silesians have been deeply aware of the interplay between the underground, the surface and the sky. The underground is the place where miners work, often encountering dangers, the surface is where they meet with their families and the sky is associated with the god. He addresses space and its division into these three levels in his work. Kavachi collected white textile products from the citizens of Katowice in order to create a long, white carpet. Digging into the closets with the people, entering their private space in search of old and unused fabrics, thus unearthing the past of which the textiles were often the vessels, was, for him, the symbolical act of going underground. Having collected the fabrics, he used various means of communication to invite people to help him sew the pieces together in Park Powstańców Śląskich, Katowice. Every person offering white fabrics were encouraged to make a wish. It took two weeks of September to complete the piece. During this time, Kavachi spent three hours every weekday sewing, talking and getting to know new people. The surface together with the performance created a platform, a shared place to meet and to discuss the concepts of hospitality, love, death, family, friendship and politics, amongst others. The carpet was hanged on the facade of a building, thus making it possible for the people’s wishes to reach the sky. Even though the project was developed in and to a certain extent inspired by Katowice, it is also a plea for world peace, with white being the colour commonly associated with innocence, purity and harmony. By donating their clothes and/or helping with the piece, the people working on the white carpet stresses the importance of mutual respect and willingness to act together in a shared space to achieve a common goal. Many thanks to donors and participants who helped to sew the carpet. |