Artwork
Woven Light
Jorge Orta, 1995
- Ref: 00007
- Materials: Light based work on the Troglodyte villages of Cappadocia in Turkey
- Catalogued: Lucy + Jorge Orta. Light Works, Black Dog Publishing, 2010, ISBN 978-1-907317-04-0
- Concept: The unique geological, historic and cultural features of the eroded pillars and minaret-like forms in Goereme were the source of inspirations for the Light Work expedition to Cappadocia commissioned by the UCPA (French Union of Outdoor Sports Centres) to mark the 60th anniversary of the non-profit organisation. The soft volcanic deposits, dating back nine million years have been carved out to form houses, churches and monasteries by a succession of inhabitants across the Cappadocia region. The reminders of the layers of civilisations in the carvings and frescoes inside the churches and chapels date back to the ninth century.
The artists reflect on the symbiosis between nature and man, in the strange landscape chiselled by both their complementary energies. The geometric symbols the artists chose to project onto the edifices and inside the caves are taken from the Turkish kilim carpet motifs and tapestry woven over centuries to reflect ancient cults and ancestral beliefs. Themes of life, birth, marriage and fertility; spiritual life and happiness; love and unison; and death, passed on across generations forming the history and layers of the Anatolian civilisations that have inhabited the troglodyte villages find themselves re-inscribed temporarily onto the surface and crevices of dwellings.
