Andia Coral Newton South East London based maker and project coordinator
Mythic Thread
14 March – 20 April 2025Royal Over-Seas League, London
Curated by Louis Chapple
“Mythic Thread brings together thirteen contemporary artists who are redefining relationships between tradition and modernity within contemporary textile-making, shining new light on ancient practices. Encompassing global histories and speculative futures, this exhibition uncovers an instrumental relationship between textile-making and mythology, spirituality, folklore, and our relationship with the natural world. ”
Exhibiting artists: Adam Boyd, Alejandra Mizrahi, Andia Coral Newton, Divya Sharma, Emmanuel Boateng, Heidi Pearce, Maria Saygua André, Melania Toma, Patrick Stratton, Renin Bilginer, Sean Savage Ferrari, Valerie Asiimwe Amani, Zethu Maseko.
Human-animal hybrids are central to myths, folklore and religion the world over, from the Minotaur of Greek legend to Cernunnos the horned Celtic deity of the Wiccan religion. The folklore of my hometown in Lincolnshire largely circulates around the spirits of the fens, who I always imagined to be chimeras themselves.
My artwork dwells on a chimera for the ever-changing and overstimulating 21st century. As late-stage capitalism plods on and the climate steadily disintegrates, this human-animal hybrid retreats into her shell and hopes it will all blow over. Chimeras appeal to me as there is a connection to established folklore as well as more contemporary genres like body horror. The idea of ones own body morphing out of its familiar form expresses sensations around overwhelming loss of control as our generation experiences disease, climate change and global conflict. Thus my chimera, as with the Minotaur and Cerunnos, is intended to prompt a questioning of the viewer’s humanness, their relationship to their own body, and that body’s relationship to its environment.
Humans move through life according to their relationships with their bodies, domestic everyday environments and the earth we live on. The work I make uses graphic woven symbols for these relationships as a language to explore human fears, hopes and desires. Despite using traditional techniques and historical references, the main concerns in my work are very future facing.