WAX Atelier and British Council Exhibition

British Council
Mother Goddess of the Three Realms
Exhibition, 2023

Camira Fabrics Hemp Curtain and Brian Turner Pink Rope. Mother Goddess Film by Rocio Chacon

Hemp Rope Bench by Nice Projects and Mother Goddess Rope by WAX Atelier, KILOMET 109 and Blue H’mong craftswomen.

Temple Tassel by WAX Atelier and Brian Turner Trimmings

Wax and linen flowers by WAX Atelier.

Bee Hut by Lyson Marchessault, Jesse Beagley, Hayatsu Architects and Company, Place

Bee Hut Hemp Earth wall by Lyson Marchessault, Jesse Beagley, Hayatsu Architects and Company, Place

Sanne Visser Rope Making Workshop

Aimee Betts Braiding Samples

KILOMET 109 Cordage Fastening Samples

Ruby Taylor Wild Cordage Samples

Studio Raw Origins Hemp Samples

Rope In Action site specific installation by hardware archive

Camira Fabrics Hemp Curtain and Brian Turner Pink Rope. Mother Goddess Film by Rocio Chacon

Camira Fabrics Hemp Curtain and Brian Turner Pink Rope. Domestic Spinner a film by Yibing Chen

Camira Fabrics Hemp Curtain and Brian Turner Pink Rope.

Exhibition curation for the British Council’s UK/Viet Nam Season 2023, ‘Mother Goddess of the Three Realms’ took place during the London Design Festival and was a part of a longer-term knowledge exchange project led by WAX Atelier, the Blue H'mong craftswomen of Pa Co village and KILOMET109.

Using rope as the medium and metaphor, we invited a wide group of practitioners to present works, both existing and site-specific commissions, that are contributing to the preservation and proliferation of vital ancient material knowledge. The project playfully paid homage to the Vietnamese tradition of Worshiping Mother Goddesses, female deities who manage the skies, rivers, forests and mountains.

Making the work.

Responding to Centre 151’s three spaces, we created three very different experiences that represented the metaphorical realms; forest, water and heaven. The average visitor stayed for an hour as they explored the works and took part in workshops, making connections between the land, local materials and each other.

The exhibition on shared heritage was supported by Centre 151 and the British Council, as part of their UK/Viet Nam Season 2023, celebrating 30 years in Viet Nam and the Architecture, Design and Fashion, Festivals and Biennials Grants.