TANYA AGUINIGA

Vestigial 1, 2019 Cotton rope, sisal, self-drying terra cotta clay, mylar, gold leaf 80h x 30w x 7d in


Metaphysical Body II, 2023 Cotton rope dyed with terracotta 67h x 54w x 13d in
Emotional Body I, 2023 Cotton rope and low-fire terracotta 76h x 13w x 6d in



 
Knots amass into visceral, amorphous bodies that chain into one another. There is a raw ache in the hanging cords of tender fibre, where pale hues turn to copper earth tones. Some forms are more abstractly indicative of flesh; others are more literal, containing terracotta extremities like hands and feet. It is as though tissues have been turned inside out. Something exposed.

Raised in Tijuana and based now in LA, craft activist Tanya Aguiniga explores her split, binational identity through installation, furniture and fibre art. Textile traditions and vibrant hues from her childhood in Mexico follow along on her journey. Aguiniga’s techniques range from off-loom weavings to felting and clay work. Addressing issues of politics and human rights across the US-Mexico border, she engages with Latino and indigenous communities through hands-on work to create social change.






        Aguiniga’s knotted pieces form anthropomorphic, bulging masses and long, rope-like sinew. With names like “Matriarchal Womb” (2022) and “Swallowing Dirt” (2023), the highly metaphorical works embody non-hierarchical interconnectedness between women and communities divided across borders. Aguiniga’s use of materiality speaks further to such depictions. On the one hand, natural materials like cotton rope and mohair wool characterise the landscapes she addresses. Parts her work are dipped in self-drying terracotta clay, a prominent material of the global south, hardening fibre surfaces and rendering a juxtaposition between soft and hard. Meanwhile, Aguiniga also uses synthetic hair, steel, and polyester, along with bright technicolour hues, ice-dyed into cotton rope. This peculiar contact between the natural and synthetic, the earthy and the electric, alludes further to the troubles and turmoil faced by BIPOC communities.

 Written by Carolina Trinker





















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