Celatum Cycle
Tapestry Design Prize for Architects
2023
The tapestry is inspired by the Solanum Celatum, an endangered and unique shrub indigenous to South Eastern NSW and Shoalhaven. It is the plant’s striking graphic qualities that captivated us the most: the thorned leaf, the orb-like seed pod and the flower’s unmistakable shade of purple. Together, these elements provided an inspiring point of departure for the tapestry’s design and composition.
To capture the spirit of this plant, ‘Celatum Cycle’ is envisaged as a triptych, wherein each panel depicts a different aspect of the shrub and its life cycle. Given the triptych’s prominent position in the gallery, a deliberate decision was made to move away from realism and toward abstraction as a means to distil the plant to its most elemental geometry.
In the process of exploring the various ways in which the shades of purple and natural, undyed wool interact with each other and with the very loom itself, ‘Celatum Cycle’ playfully invites the viewer to not only delight in the joys afforded by tapestries, but to marvel at the inherent elegance of nature’s cradle to cradle life cycle.
When reading the tapestry from left to right, the first panel shows the spherical seed pod as a perfect disc suspended within the exposed tapestry loom.
The second panel depicts a stylized image of the flower of the shrub. The deep green orb of the seed pod is now a radiant creamy sun in the center of a large purple disc which is enriched by subtle tonal variation and pattern.
The third panel depicts the distinct leaf in a various state of decay. As the flesh of the leaf disappears towards the lower half of this panel, it is brought forward away from the wall to allow for the transparency of the skeletal leaf form to be better experienced.
The composition was considered particular for the space to allow the main flower element to be located precisely in the center of the wall. The draped element of the leaf panel was also positioned to the right of this panel to allow viewers when entering the hall to view the translucency of this panel with the deep colours of the flower as a backdrop.
3D Visualisations by Davidov Architects
