360 Degrees project has a big hang-up
The name wasn’t intended to be ironic, but Selven O’Keef Jarmon’s epic “360 Degrees Vanishing” project hasn’t appeared as quickly as he anticipated.
To call attention to the gradual disappearance of South Africa’s traditional beading culture, he designed four monumental beaded tapestries as a shimmering veil that will hang over the exterior walls of the Art League Houston building at 1953 Montrose.
Through an international cultural exchange with South Africa, Jarmon and the league have worked with the South African government as well as the Craft and Cultural Hub of the Eastern Cape and the South African Cultural Minister’s Office.
Fifteen professional beaders from South African cooperatives visited in groups of five to lead the project during eight months of work that also drew more than 1,000 local volunteers. They strung millions of large plastic beads onto 2-feet-by-2-feet-galvanized steel supports that will be pieced together into large grids to form the tapestries.
Knowing the tapestries might be tricky to hang, Jarmon enlisted sculptors Dan Havel and Patrick Renner and architect Cameron Armstrong to help. They saw that “360 Degrees Vanishing” also needed a structural engineer.
“That changed everything,” Jarmon said.
Larry Whaley of Cardno Haynes Whaley Engineers came to the rescue, drawing plans for a framework that were approved by the city in February and completed in March. The tapestries will weigh 3,000 pounds at their heaviest points, Jarmon said, and the framework must be able to withstand high winds.
That brought unex- pected costs.
Jarmon and the league need to raise $125,000 more for construction, anticipating that about half will come from a matching grant.
Jarmon said to date they’ve raised more than $100,000 in Houston and $50,000 in South Africa, with another $100,000 of in-kind support, includ- ing donated beads; wire frames; space-age thread; and housing, food and transportation for the visitors.
He said Tellepsen Builders is on board to fabricate, construct and install the framework, a process that will take six to eight weeks. He hopes to hang the tapestries by October. On the plus side, “360” was planned as a temporary installation. It’s been such an effort, Jarmon said the league plans to keep it up indefinitely when it’s finally complete.
“360 Degrees Vanishing” reimagines the possibilities of how a traditional medium such as beading can be reactivated in a new context. The creative community that grew up around the project reflects the global diversity and spirit of Houston, Jarmon said. Now he just wants the rest of the world to see it.
Learn more at artleaguehouston.org.