Red Line Service, Chicago, IL
Maps can tell us where we are and how to get where we want to go. A third possibility is posited by Tracey Christmas in "Afro-topographical Explorations," an upcycled yarn tapestry: how we got here. The fiber artist and puppet maker—-she’s a deft hand at turning cardboard and glue into charming animals—-is concerned with redlining, the discriminatory practice whereby entire sections of Chicago and other cities were deemed uninsurable and unqualified for loans, thereby leading to decades of disinvestment and segregation. Those areas were literally marked out with red lines on policymakers’ maps, as on her rug, where Christmas traces sections out in red wool. In between those lines, which run like blood, are huge swathes of bland white threads and smaller multicolor patches that thrum with joyful life. The message of resilience in the face of racism is clear, but the form complexifies: one wants to touch it all, every soft, hand-knotted loop, no matter the color.
—Lori Waxman 10/5/2024 5:11 PM