By Yolandé Gouws, Mapula volunteer based in Berlin, Germany
Published 19 February 2025
Venice, the city on water, glistening in the morning sun. Waves splashing up against the historical buildings, water taxis gliding by on the choppy turquoise water, filled with tourists and art enthusiasts visiting the beautiful city and one of the most internationally celebrated biannual art events, the Venice Biennale.
What could be more exciting and prestigious than exhibiting alongside over 400 artisans from 70 countries at an exhibition celebrating crafts from around the world?
In September 2024, Mapula Embroideries was honored to be given this opportunity.
Invited by the Michelangelo Foundation in Geneva, Switzerland, the Mapula women were commissioned to embroider three 90 x 90 cm panels. The panels, designed by the artist Nigel Peake, featured intricate depictions of the iconic Rialto Bridge in Venice and maps of the island, San Giorgio Maggiore, the exhibition’s picturesque location.
The women, working from their homes in Winterveld, just north of Pretoria, South Africa, created the pieces with exceptional skill and in the typical Mapula embroidery style. The completed panels were then shipped to Venice, Italy, to be showcased as part of the Homo Faber 2024 exhibition: The Journey of Life.
The exhibition, The Journey of Life, took place on the beautiful island of San Giorgio Maggiore, part of the famous historical city on water, Venice. Usually, the buildings on the island are used as artist studios, libraries and spaces for art institutions. All this was cleared to host the third edition of Homo Faber and the more than 800 craftworks that made up the exhibition.
In the warmth of late summer, with the scent of salty sea air mingling with cypress trees, the embroidered panels were displayed outdoors along the sides of a graceful loggia – an open-sided gallery with elegant columns – overlooking a manicured courtyard garden.
Together with panels of the same size by 19 other artisans and craft studios, the embroidered pieces lined the length of the loggia, forming the first stage of the exhibition, The Journey of Life: Birth. The panels were designed by Nigel Peake and are inspired by the Game of the Goose, a board game that is thought to have originated in Italy as far back as the 15th century. In the game, Goose and Hazard spaces symbolise the good and bad fortune that fate has in store for all of us over the course of a lifetime.
One by one, the panels revealed the diversity of textile art – meticulous, vibrant, and endlessly surprising. Each trio of panels stood apart in terms of colour, material, and technique, yet all shared an unmistakable spirit of craftsmanship. The works were a testament to the immense skill, patience, and love poured into their creation, holding viewers’ attention and admiration.
From Australia to Japan, Afghanistan to South Africa, England to Canada, the panels celebrated the rich tapestry of global cultures and Mapula was proud to be in the midst of all this!
Many thanks to Giovanna Marchello and the Michaelangelo Foundation for the opportunity to be part of this stellar exhibition.
Homo Faber 2024: The Journey of Life is the third edition of Homo Faber Biennial, a celebration of contemporary craftsmanship in Venice curated by the Michelangelo Foundation for Creativity and Craftsmanship.
Browse the Homo Faber 2024 e-catalogue, where you will find the biographies of the 20 artisans and ateliers taking part in the Game of the Goose and the stories of their panels: https://2024.homofaber.com/ecatalogue
About the author:
Yolandé Gouws was born and raised in South Africa and currently lives and works in Berlin, Germany. She studied architecture at the University of Pretoria and in Dessau, Germany, and then pursued a career as an artist and curator.