Regina Perez Kamel

As embodied knowledge passed down through generations, learning to weave with the backstrap loom taught me the value of relationality and collaboration, which translated into navigating London with an intercultural disposition. This allowed me to learn by engaging in conversation about lac, a natural dye material produced in India, which I thought was similar to cochineal, a material from Mexico, as both yield reds and come from bugs. Since I decided to work with cochineal due to its link to colonial trade, dyeing with both stands as a statement of the healing power of collectivity, and of the need to build cross-cultural bridges to get through the civilization crisis we face as we confront environmental, social, and economic challenges in our contemporary world. 

Weaving with the backstrap loom.

The implements of the backstrap loom and the thread used. In Mesoamerican mythology, these implements were depicted as the weapons of war of goddesses.

With a studio overlooking Big Ben, the question became, what happens when you situate a slow practice like the backstrap loom in a fast-paced context like London? Are we slowing time by strapping to Big Ben? Is it a resistance?

One day, after untying the dyed threads and placing the loom on the floor, I came across a shape that reminded me of a vagina. At that moment, I understood the concept of "making with" an began to listen to the loom to discover what the work was about.