Political landscape
Otobong Nkanga’s diverse display at Tate St Ives advocates a more harmonious connection with the Earth
‘My work isn’t just about one place, it’s universal,’ says the Belgium-based, Nigerian-born artist Otobong Nkanga, whose multidisciplinary practice encompasses tapestry, photography, drawing, installation, video and performance. When she first became interested in the landscape, exploring the way it has been commodified and politicised, its relationship with the body and its vulnerability to human aggressions, she turned to her native Nigeria for inspiration because, she says, ‘it’s a place where you’re immediately confronted by the elements, by extremities’. Increasingly, however, Nkanga recognises that ‘what we do in one place affects everywhere else’; by widening her artistic lens, she hopes to strengthen our sense of empathy towards the land we inhabit. ‘I’m looking at ways we can heal, instead of just pointing out places of destruction,’ she explains.
For her newly opened exhibition at Tate St Ives, Nkanga has spent time getting to know the landscape in Cornwall – ‘the vegetation, the sea, the sky, the light’ – and reflecting on the human character of this former mining region. In response, she has created a site-specific wall drawing, a sculptural installation and a performance that will give local people a deeper emotional bond with their environment and history. ‘When I make art, I’m always considering what it means to be here on this planet,’ she says. ‘I hope my work can help us find ways to turn it into a more liveable place.’ fh ‘Otobong Nkanga’ is at Tate St Ives (www.tate.org.uk) until 5 January 2020.