Toxic Vessel


Local resident Khun Pikul Deelon-ngam who runs a women's cooperative in a nearby village, differs from the more traditional basket weavers in that she uses cut up strips of old newspapers to wrap around thin bamboo sticks and wire and weaves these into more decorative forms. Khun Pikul found a dynamic collaborator in Karla Sachse from Berlin, who is recognised for her text based works and her use of "left overs" and carefully preserved documents an other bits of paper relating to her life in the former East-German days. Learning the technique from Khun Picul, Karla embarked upon weaving a large paper container. Titled 'female vessel', she took the concept of a basket being a container or vessel further by engaging all present - female and male. Handing out blanc strips of paper she asked us to record our bodily experiances in the time we had been there. These hand-written strips, bearing some very personal accounts were rolled and woven along with the newspaper to become part of the belly like form.
Varsha Nair über Womanifesto 2001 in 'art/4/d' Bangkok


Die Idee und das Handwerk
also kommen aus
dem Dschungel.

Zeitung ist Abfall
und nutzbar noch
dort wie hier.

Die Verwandlung
des Flachen zum Körper
braucht Langmut.

Eindringliches Gespräch
und Freundschaft
gedeihen daneben.

Einflochten sind
Erfahrung und
Schmerz.

Jeder Korb
gehört zu einem
anderen Ort.

Das ‚toxische Gefäß‘
wuchs in einem kleinen
kaschubischen Haus.

Andere Papiere und
Orte ruhen noch
in Erwartung.

 

Karla Sachse