Artist Abdoulaye Konaté merges political commentary and traditional craftsmanship in Iniva's fifth annual window commission. This 7 metre wide textile created especially for the vast window space of Rivington Place communicates global diversity issues directly to the street.

In this new work he takes the striking plumage of the guinea fowl as his starting point, drawing upon its significance south of the Sahara where it appears in tales, legends, theatre and literature.

The artist's past work communicates his political concerns: highlighting environmental issues such as de-forestation, living under dictatorship, threatened minority groups. His response is not one of despair, but one of hope, exploring the human condition through thoughtful and critical expression.

Here Konaté is reflecting on Malian writer Massa Makan Diabaté's comment that ‘the guinea fowl spreads out its colours over its plumage and man keeps them in his heart' (from The Hairdresser of Kouta). Konaté sees this akin to the ambiguous position heads of governments take with respect to religion.

Presented by Iniva (Institute of International Visual Arts) at Rivington Place

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