Monumental new installation by artist Nontsikelelo Mutiti transforms facade of ICA Philadelphia
The First Art Newspaper on the Net    Established in 1996 Wednesday, December 4, 2024


Monumental new installation by artist Nontsikelelo Mutiti transforms facade of ICA Philadelphia
Installation view.



LOS ANGELES, CA.- Institute of Contemporary Art at the University of Pennsylvania (ICA) announced today that artist Nontsikelelo Mutiti transformed its facade into an expansive, 2,000-square-foot work of art as part of its inaugural Entryways commission. Developed in partnership with Maharam, North America’s leading creator of textiles for interiors, Entryways: Nontsikelelo Mutiti interweaves visual histories and patterns of ironwork with African hair braiding designs to explore concepts of beauty, labor, and protection. On view from February 10 through December 2024, the new installation is visible to passersby, advancing ICA’s history of commissioning artworks and installations that extend outward from the galleries into public space.

“This expansive new commission transforms the main point of access into our building, serving as both an inviting entryway for the public into ICA and an exciting point of departure into new art and ideas,” said Zoë Ryan, Daniel W. Dietrich II Director of ICA Philadelphia. “This project builds upon ICA’s history of partnering with Maharam to transform public spaces within our building and marks the inaugural iteration of the ongoing Entryways series of commissions that will activate our facade. It is fitting to be launching this new series at the start of our 60th anniversary season as we look ahead to our next chapter at ICA.”

Born in Zimbabwe and based in New Haven, Connecticut, Mutiti has developed an artistic practice that explores the relationship between modern design and its roots in the African diasporic visual culture. For the Entryways commission, the artist incorporates African braid renderings with symbols traditionally found in decorative architectural features first created by enslaved blacksmiths from West Africa. These designs are now found across the United States and the larger diaspora, including the ironwork forms on windows, railings, and doors across Philadelphia, creating a shared diasporic visual language.

The installation features the printed ironwork and braid motifs on a gradient background, with gold barrettes arranged at an exaggerated scale throughout the pattern. Mutiti implicitly draws a connection between the protective functions of both ironwork and hair braiding, while bringing to the fore the often-invisible labor that goes into these designs.

Noted Hallie Ringle, ICA’s Daniel and Brett Sundheim Chief Curator, “Expanding across our facade, Nontsi’s work simultaneously highlights overlooked aspects of our collective history and visually connects the modernist design of ICA’s building with the history and architectural legacy of the city we inhabit. The work is both site-specific and resonant with global meanings, and we hope it will become a welcoming beacon for our communities.”

Mutiti and Maharam worked closely to explore materials and printing techniques that would integrate the artwork with the building’s architectural features, including substantial window frames, tinted glass, and use of natural light in order to offer different views of the work and the space. The design enlists a clear film that was printed—and in some instances die cut—to optimize the impact of the artwork’s motifs. The application of Mutiti’s artwork on ICA’s windowed facade embraces the space’s varied light conditions. In daylight, the artwork’s ombre background enhances the intricate artwork as viewed through the tinted windows and casts the motifs on the entrance’s floor. By night, the design appears as though on a lightbox, lit from within.

Nontsikelelo Mutiti is a Zimbabwean-born visual artist and educator. She is invested in elevating the work and practices of Black peoples past, present, and future through a conceptual approach to design, publishing, archiving practices, and institution building. Major recent projects include a large-scale floor mural for the 2023 exhibition O Quilombismo at the Haus der Kulturen der Welt in Berlin; a wall mural, “KUDUDUNURA,” installed at Animal Farm, Harare; and an exterior mural, “BLACK THANG MURAL,” installed at Stable in Washington, D.C. in 2021. Mutiti is the Director of Graduate Studies in Graphic Design at Yale School of Art. She has held academic positions at Zimbabwe Institute of Vigital Arts (ZIVA), SUNY Purchase College, and VCUarts at Virginia Commonwealth University. Mutiti holds a diploma in Multimedia from the Zimbabwe Institute of Vigital Arts (ZIVA) and an MFA from the Yale School of Art, with a concentration in Graphic Design.










Today's News

February 12, 2024

Richard Prince takes on the jokes of Milton Berle

Harmony Korine delivers chaos at a Hollywood premiere

A new creature emerges from a forest drowned by the Gulf of Mexico

Museum Haus Konstruktiv opens the new exhibition year with a solo show on Bettina Pousttchi

Artis-Naples, The Baker Museum opens 'George Gershwin and Modern Art: A Rhapsody in Blue exhibition

Lost images reveal the history of Rio's Carnival

Robert Downey Jr., the secret weapon in 'Oppenheimer'

Monumental new installation by artist Nontsikelelo Mutiti transforms facade of ICA Philadelphia

German Expressionism's response to changing world explored in National Gallery of Art exhibition

National Museum of American History receives gift to support gunboat Philadelphia preservation

A new exhibition reimagining landscape through works from the M+ Collections opens to the public

Rare missionary map up for auction shows how Victorian zeal carved its path across the globe

Raven Chacon's sound-and-art symphony

Exhibition presents a vibrant portrait of the history and culture of Oregon Jews

Where's Merce? He's in the purse. (His ashes, that is.)

Take part in artworks by Yoko Ono and Oscar Murillo as part of year round UNIQLO Tate Play programme

bLAh, bLAh, bLAh: Chenhung Chen & Snežana Petrović opens at LAUNCH Gallery

Ye's new LP debuts at a New York Arena. Why do his fans stay loyal?

Exhibition at Centre Pompidou brings together two photographic collections

True-crime documentaries that tell more about us than the victims

Hollywood made 14% fewer shows in 2023, marking the end of Peak TV

Tate Modern appoints two curators specialising in Asia-Pacific art

Exhibition presents new and recent work by Carla Klein in her first solo museum exhibition in the Netherlands

Debra Rosenberg named Smithsonian Magazine executive editor

What Things to Avoid When Packing for Umrah?




Museums, Exhibits, Artists, Milestones, Digital Art, Architecture, Photography,
Photographers, Special Photos, Special Reports, Featured Stories, Auctions, Art Fairs,
Anecdotes, Art Quiz, Education, Mythology, 3D Images, Last Week, .

 



Founder:
Ignacio Villarreal
(1941 - 2019)
Editor & Publisher: Jose Villarreal
Art Director: Juan José Sepúlveda Ramírez
Writer: Ofelia Zurbia Betancourt

Royalville Communications, Inc
produces:

ignaciovillarreal.org juncodelavega.com facundocabral-elfinal.org
Founder's Site. Hommage
to a Mexican poet.
Hommage
       

The First Art Newspaper on the Net. The Best Versions Of Ave Maria Song Junco de la Vega Site Ignacio Villarreal Site
Tell a Friend
Dear User, please complete the form below in order to recommend the Artdaily newsletter to someone you know.
Please complete all fields marked *.
Sending Mail
Sending Successful