Yinka Shonibare Mobility (review)

YINKA SHONIBARE MOBI LI T Y James Coh a n Gallery N e w Yor k, Oct obe r , 2 0 0 5 The i mpl i cat i ons of m obi l i t y—t r avel for economi c gai n, j our ney f or per sonal pleasure, and movement of t he b od y—ar e explored by Yi nka Shoni bar e in t wo New York Cit y venues. At t he Cooper -Hewi t t , Shoni bar e curat ed an exhi bi t by sel ect i ng f rom 250, 000 permanent obj ect s collect ed by t he Hewit t sist ers. Whil e museums t ypical l y overl ook det ail s concer ni ng t heir collect ors, Shoni bar e t akes t he at ypical posi t i on of expl or i ng t heir lives and ident it ies. As we learn about t he wel l -educat ed, arist ocrat ic world t ravelers, quest i ons f ormul at e. Who i s col l ect ing f rom w hom ? Why are t ravel ers compel l ed t o col l ect ? Or is it col lect ors who are obsessed wit h t ravel ? Shoni bar e added t wo of his own works t o t he exhi bi t . Like Moko Jumbi e f igures danci ng t hr ough a Caribbean carnival, t wo gl obe-t r ot t i ng museum f ounders hover over t heir col l ect ion in wooden st il t s. Mi ss Sal l y and Mi ss Nelly Hewit t are inst al l ed in t he art ist 's t rademark Vict orian-era cl ot hi ng usi ng Af rican t ext iles. Act ually, t he t ext ile originat es f rom bat ik, an Indonesi an process t hat uses wax t o resist dye. During col oni zat i on of Indonesi a, t he Dut ch i nvent ed an i ndust r i al means of manuf act uring bat ik in an at t empt t o t ake over t he indust ry. By t he lat e 1800s, bat iks were export ed i nst ead t o Af rica where t here was a demand, so t hat t o t hi s day, Real Dut ch Wax made in t he Net herlands remains t he most expensive and aut hent ic wax print for Af rican consumer s. How Af rican or European or Asi an is t he t ext il e? In lieu of t axonomi c cl assif icat ion and an essent i al i st not i on of aut hent icit y, Shoni bar e blurs boundar ies of ident it y so t hat t he mannequi ns cont i nuousl y deny monol i t hi c l abel i ng. The Vict orian era, dur i ng which t he si st ers lived, represent s t he hei ght of col oni al i sm. This period has result ed in an inevit abl e exchange and amal gam of cult ure, ident it y, economy, and art . Hence, by t heir presence, t he sist ers represent pol emic int ricacies of col l ect i ng, col oni al i sm , and gl ob al exchange. For i nst ance, t he ski n on t hei r hands and neck has t ur ned br own. Like t heir cl ot hi ng, a part of t hem has i nevi t abl y become Af rican or Asi an t hr ough t hei r col l ect i ng of obj ect s f aci l i t at ed by col oni al i sm , t hr ough t heir i ngest i on of chocol at e, cof f ee, and sugar t hat were by-pr oduct s of t hose expl oit ed under col oni...