A story lies between each stitch, weave of the fabric, and unassuming garment. The consumerist nature of textiles often overshadows the darker and often violent narratives of the fabrics themselves. The nuances, histories, and perspectives of cloth are dismantled in an amalgamation of the exquisite works of Los Angeles’s Rebecka Jackson and South African artist Turiya Magadlela. When Angels Speak of Love features sculptures and installations repurposing women’s pantyhoses into haunting forms. The inherent femininity of this article of clothing, compounded by the gendered nature of the textile craft, is upended by a captivating darkness within the work of these two artists. For Jackson, she forms larger-than-life abstracted bodies incorporating projected images that speak as a call to social activism. Conversely, Magadlela engages her patchwork of pantyhose into an immersive and overwhelming tapestry of portraits. Together, these works confront the viewer with the history and the continued presence of gendered and racialized violence by placing them face to face with the tragic and unimaginable impact on their victims. Gazing at these idiosyncratic forms, reimagining history, and reflections of the present day, each person is asked to rethink their relationship and understand the psyche and the physical body. These are more than facets of our past, but ongoing doctrine. Despite their opacity, we feel trapped and suffocated by the emotional weight that textiles can carry.

Rebecka Jackson / Turiya Magadlela