Transcendence

Speplól Tanya Zilisnki works with seed beads. They use are tiny, measuring less than two and half millimeters wide and just over one and half millimeters tall. Alone, they are a speck, a small blink of colour that can be easily missed in the palm of a hand. But woven together, these little specks form brilliant tapestries, each comprising of over 70,000 beads. 

The loom beaded tapestries of Transcendence are a dramatic break from Speplól’s previous practice. These pieces lean into randomness, following a creative process rather than a precise, predetermined pattern. And this process was one of controlled chaos. Beads were poured into a jar in sedimentary layers and then spun in the artist’s hands. Centrifugal forces mixed the beads, merging the colours into an unpredictable bead soup. Speplól then sat at the loom, threading the beads onto the tapestry as they emerged from the jar. 

Through this process, Spelól felt a deep sense of connection, to themselves, their artwork, the past, future and the world around them. Transcendence became not only the feeling that defined the creation of this work but the thematic heart of the series. Transcendence of self, time, material, knowledge and experience.  

Throughout Transcendence colours blend and cluster, shimmering and shifting under our gaze. Beautiful creations formed of miniscule individual beads, intuition and the patient hands of the artist.