Igshaan Adams Artist Statement
Nationality:
South African
Medium:
Installation • Sculpture • Textile • Weaving • Beadwork • Performance
Key Themes:
Identity • Memory • Spirituality • Community • Mapping • Movement • Belonging •
Transformation
My work explores the relationship between identity, memory, and the spaces we inhabit. I am
interested in how personal histories, cultural traditions, and lived experiences become
embedded within landscapes, objects, and the body. Through textiles, weaving, beadwork, and
installation, I create works that transform everyday materials into intricate compositions,
revealing the invisible connections between people, place, and collective memory.
The process of making is central to my practice. I combine weaving, knotting, braiding, and
embroidery to construct surfaces that embody time, labour, and repetition. Each thread, bead,
and woven structure becomes part of a larger network of relationships, reflecting the ways
individual experiences are woven into broader social and cultural narratives. The handmade
process allows material to carry both personal significance and shared histories.
My work draws inspiration from the streets, pathways, and communities that shape everyday
life. I am fascinated by the marks left through movement—paths walked, boundaries crossed,
and spaces shared—and I translate these patterns into sculptural forms and suspended
installations. These works become symbolic maps that explore belonging, migration, memory,
and the ways environments record human presence.
Materiality, texture, and light define my visual language. I work with rope, beads, wire, fabric,
and found materials, allowing their tactile qualities to create delicate yet complex structures.
Transparency, shadow, and movement are equally important, encouraging viewers to
experience the work from multiple perspectives while becoming aware of the relationships
between object, architecture, and space.
Spirituality and healing are important aspects of my artistic practice. I see weaving as both a
physical and meditative act, creating opportunities for reflection, reconciliation, and connection.
Through layered forms and immersive environments, I seek to create spaces where personal
memory intersects with collective experience, inviting contemplation of identity, resilience, and
transformation.
Ultimately, my practice is an exploration of the threads that connect people to one another and
to the places they call home. Through textile, sculpture, and installation, I aim to create works
that celebrate movement, cultural memory, and the enduring relationships between material,
landscape, and human experience.
