As a result of research trips to Ghana in 2012 and 2013, I became interested in weaving as it is practiced there. With the permission of my teacher, I attempted to recreate a Kente weaving loom in Berlin as part of the 48-hour Festival in 2013. The loom and the act of weaving were re-imagined as an alternative arbitration process that could help citizens address and resolve problems and disputes, without having recourse to a traditional legal court
The act of weaving contains inherently within itself the act of reconciliation. And by extension the possibility for a greater reconciliation that takes place between participants, or within a community. As soon as warp and weft are combined, a magical process occurs whereby contrary strands, irreconcilable directions, are combined, tied and knotted together.
Out of many opposing, independent strands comes a fabric, textile. This Stoffe is strong and cannot be torn or easily destroyed. It portrays decorative elements, designs, motifs that convey meaning. It is a communal manifestation that is more in its wholeness, than the sum of its parts.