BHMBo Arte - HYACINTHE OUATTARA

A  reflection around the materiality of textiles as an element of circulation that underlines the imprints of the world and the present time, of an inner world and the future. A sort of poetic conversation with our space-time and physicality engaging its complexity, its ambivalence.
How can we materialize the passing time by creating imaginaries connected to the impulses coming from within...
Textiles through their emotional charge are like a vectors that connects one point to another, various poles, the poetry of the bond and the infinite circulatory movement.

l  17  febbraio scorso,  nell’ambito  degli  eventi BHMBo, marcando  l’inaugurazione  della  prima  edizione  dell’iniziativa  Black  History  Month Bologna,  L’accademia  delle  Belle  arti  è  stato  lo  scenario  che  ha  accolto  l’incontro  poetico  dell’artista  Burkinabe   Hyacinthe  Ouattara con  il  progetto  didattico L’infinito/Materialità,  una  specie  di  dialogo  con  la  materia  e  lo  spazio  infinito,  frutto  di  anni  di  ricerca  che  l’artista  ha  voluto condividere  con  gli  studenti  dell’Accademia  sotto  la  supervisione  del  Prof  Lucca  Caccioni  che  ha voluto  ospitarci  nel  quadro  dei seminari  didattici  di  cui  ho  buona  memoria  per  averci  preso  parte  durante  il  mio  percorso  formativo. 

Un  dialogo, condotto  dall’artista,  in  cui  abbiamo  potuto  seguire  l’evoluzione  della  sua  poetica,  dalla  sua  genesi  in  Burkina  Faso  con l’opera  “France  Aurevoir”- 2010, in  cui  l’artista  denunciava  il  rapporto  neo-coloniale    che  persiste  tra  il  suo  paese  e  la  Francia  con  un installazione  pubblica  fatta  in  un  mercatino  della  Capitale  con stoffe,  vestiti  e  pezze  usate  raccolte  in  Francia  e  spedite  in  Africa molto  spesso,  eppure  l’Africa  produce  cottone  e  tessuto,  questo  paternalismo  perenne  che  si  nasconde  dietro  ad  un  assistenzialismo interessato.  

Ad  un certo punto  l’artista  ci  racconta  del  suo  arrivo  a  Parigi  tra  avversità  culturali  e  ristrettezza  dello  “spazio-abitazione”  si chiedeva  come  esprimersi  in  queste  condizioni  per  essere  più  conciso  come  abitare  la  Francia  con  la  mia  arte?  Questa  Francia  che  lo abitava  nei  suoi  sogni  la  sua  lingua  ed  il  suo  modo  di  pensare,  ed  è  allora  che  l’osservazione  dell’andirivieni  della  gente  a  Parigi  nei supermercati,  le  strade,  le  piazze  senza  salutare  molto  spesso,  ma  l’incrocio  degli  sguardi  accusatori  o  semplicemente  curiosi  o giudicanti  lo  riporta  nell’atelier  di  sua  madre  dove  da  bambino  le  prime  forme  di  disegno  che  vide  nascere  erano  sulle  federe  o lenzuola  realizzate  da  lei  per  la  gente  del  paese.   Da  quel  momento,  diventa  chiaro  per  l’artista  che  il  suo  laboratorio  è  lo spazio  ed  essendo  infinito,  sia  interno  che  esterno,  poco  a  poco comincia  a  popolarsi  di  comparse,  la  gente  che va  e  viene,  le  interferenze  delle  possibili  tracce  lasciate  dal  loro  percorso  ripetuto  o  no,  le  loro  impronte  nello  spazio,  il  segno  delle loro  voci  e  l’inquinamento  che  ne  deriva. Stoffa  dopo  stoffa,  filo  dopo  filo  contorce,  assembla,  annoda  e  talvolta  sospende assecondando  le  sue  pulsioni  interiori  tali  ad un  trombettista  che  esegue  un  pezzo  di  Jazz  che  spezz, intreccia, sconnette  e  conclude,  il ritmo  è  la  sola  impronta  possibile. 

Evolvendo  nella  nostra  “causerie”  l’artista  ci  racconta  della  scoperta  che  orientò  la  sua  poetica  del  tessile  a    Parigi:  “La    funzione  del vestito”;    Il  vestito  copre,  vela,  nasconde  ciò  che  deve  nascondere  ed  allo  stesso  tempo  mostra  forse  quello  che  vogliamo  nascondere, qui  sembra  che  siamo  su  un  palcoscenico  in  cui  ognuno  riveste  un  ruolo.  Se  il  vestirsi  ci  permette  di  coprire  la  nostra  nudità  fisica, tanto il  nostro  mondo  interiore  in  un  certo  senso  cerca  di  esprimersi  e  trova  a  volte  lo  stile  le  tonalità  il  colore  per  farlo  e  dunque Hyacinthe  ci  invita ancora  ad    esplorare    la  complessità  e  l’ambivalenza    della  materia  con  il  tessile. 

Questa ambivalenza viene anche rivalutata attraverso il tema guida di questa prima edizione del Black History Month Bologna. Come edizione pilota con il tema "Obliggato" abbiamo voluto insistere su un invito a soddisfare gli obblighi sociali che ci collegano tutti indiscriminatamente l'uno verso l'altro nel senso più ampio, l'affermazione nella razza umana intrinseca alla stessa natura umana. Questa proposta artistica ha immerso i nostri sensi non solo al livello discorsivo di cui l'incontro con l'artista ha catturato l'essenza, ma gli aspetti visivi ci hanno anche impegnato a esplorare una dimensione materiale attraverso la presentazione di un'installazione risultante da una performance precedente. 

Quest'opera faceva parte di una scenografia per la sfilata ispirata ai designer africani tenutasi all'Aula Teatro lo scorso febbraio dal titolo The Infinite / Materiality I ”successivamente ad Aula Caccioni una trasmutazione dell'operain un'installazione chiamata "L'infinito materialità II" che suggerisce il lavoro dell'artista come una certa evoluzione o atto circolatorio. D'altra parte, le trecce, i nodi e le cravatte che a volte richiamano l'apparato digerente o circolatorio, in questo lavoro ci ricordano la complessità di questi sistemi che compongono il nostro organismo, contribuiscono al suo funzionamento e alla sua unità, invitandoci a considerare l'esistenza di infinite possibilità di narrazioni. Questo suggerisce l'uso del termine Obbligato da parte del jazz che favorisce l'emergere di una narrativa collettiva, consapevole della ricchezza di melodie / narrazioni precedenti che sono di pari importanza.Alla luce dell'attuale situazione sanitaria globale, come direttore artistico del Black History Month Bologna ho ceduto alla tentazione di stabilire un parallelo tra questa produzione artistica e la stessa pandemia.

 Introduzione  e  traduzione  dal francese  a  cura  di  Patrick  Joel  Tatcheda

On 17 February last, as part of the events marking the inauguration of the first edition of the Black History Month Bologna, the Accademia delle Belle Arti was the setting for a poetic meeting with the Burkinabe artist Hyacinthe Ouattara for a didactic project.
The Infinite/Materiality, a kind of dialogue with matter and infinite space, the result of years of research that the artist wanted to share with the students of the Accademia under the supervision of Prof. Lucca Caccioni who hosted the project in the framework of the didactic seminars that I personally have fond memories of having taken part in them during my formative path.

A dialogue led by the artist in which we were able to follow the evolution of his poetics, from a genesis in Burkina Faso with the work "France Aurevoir", 2010,  in which the artist denounced the neo-colonial relationship that persists between his country and France with a public installation made in a market in the country’s capital with used fabrics, clothes and pieces of cloth which are systematically collected in France and sent to Africa. This is despite the fact that Africa produces cotton and fabric, hence representing a perennial paternalism that hides behind an interest in assistance. 

At one point, the artist told us about his arrival in Paris amid cultural adversities and the narrowness of "living space", wondering how to express himself in these conditions and interested in being more concise about how to inhabit France with his art? This France that inhabited him through his dreams, his language and his way of thinking became a reflection that led to the observation of the comings and goings of the people in Paris in the supermarkets, the streets, the squares frequently without exchanging hellos or goodbyes, the intersection of the accusing, judging or simply curious looks brought him back to his mother's atelier where as a child the first forms of drawing he saw born were on pillowcases or sheets made by his mother for the people of the country. From that moment on, it becomes clear to the artist that his studio is space itself, and being infinite both inside and outside, little by little Hyacinthe's space began to be populated with extras, people coming and going, the interference of the possible traces left by their repeated or unrepeated paths, their footprints in space, the sound of their voices and the resulting pollution... Cloth after cloth he twists and twists assembling knots, suspending, following his inner impulses like a trumpeter who performs a piece of Jazz that breaks up intertwined disconnects then concludes, the rhythm is the only possible imprint.

Evolving in our "causerie" the artist told us about the discovery that oriented his poetics inviting him to cement himself in the manipulation of textiles in Paris: "The function of the clothing"; Clothing covers, sails, hides what it must hide and at the same time shows perhaps what we want to hide, it can seem like we are on a stage where everyone plays a role. If dressing ourselves allows us to cover up our physical nudity, in the meantime our inner world in a certain sense tries to express itself and sometimes elaborates our style, the colors do so and therefore Hyacinthe invites us,  even further, to explore the complexity and ambivalence of our relationship with textiles.

This ambivalence is also re-evaluated through the guiding theme of this first edition of Black History Month Bologna. As a pilot edition with the theme "Obliggato" we wanted to insist on an invitation to fullfill the social obligations that link us all indiscriminately towards each other in the broadest sense, the assertion in the human race intrinsic to human nature itself. This artistic proposal has immersed our senses not only at the discursive level of which the meeting with the artist has captured the essence of, the visual aspects have also engaged us to explore a material dimension through the presentation of an installation resulting from a previous performance. 

This work was part a set design for the fashion show inspired by African Designers held in the Aula Teatro last February entitled The Infinite / Materiality I”  successively in Aula Caccioni a transmutation of the work
in an installation called "L'infinito materialità II" which suggests the artist’s  work as a certain evolution or circulatory act. On the other hand, the braiding, the knots and ties that sometimes recall the digestive or the circulatory apparatus, in this work remind us of the complexity of these systems that make up our organism, contribute to its functioning and its unity, inviting us to consider the existence of infinite possibilities of narratives. This suggestive of jazz’s use of the term Obbligato that favoring the emergence of a collective narrative, aware of the richness of previous melodies/narratives that are  equal importance.
In view of the current global health situation we are experiencing, as artistic director of Black History Month Bologna I have given in to a temptation to establish a parallel between this artistic production and the pandemic itself.

Very often artists, through their works, anticipate reality by extensive periods of time if they do not try to create it themselves.
Covid 19 does not concern itself with territorial borders, comfort, administrative titles, the status quo, race or world economic powers, indeed some seemingly “simpler” countries are doing better than those with specialized superstructures and means that in the light of all this are proving ineffective. How can we manage to overcome the technological impotence clearly exposed by this being composed  of just a few microns in solitude? With individualism? In protectionism? In radicalized nationalism? When will we learn that a single branch is more fragile than several branches put together? Or that a knot is more resistant than a split? It takes many rivers to make an ocean! Perhaps this is the most significant intent that we will need to consider at the end of this unique experience both on the artistic level and in regards to the global health. Never more than before will we feel the urgency of agreeing on the need to build an organic society that is not only focused on the human being, but also and above all on life, because the universe is made of living particles and everything that is alive is worthy of our attention and care. 

Translation to english by Justin Randolph Thomson