Constant Gardener

Billie Zangewa stitches scenes from her life to portray a woman who, as she says, “does not look for approval outside of herself.” Constant Gardener refers to the time after the artist’s son was born and she would sometimes rise at night to plant the fresh produce that would later nourish her child. For Zangewa, sewing is a matter of identity and she prefers to work with the luminous, reflective properties of dupion silk.

Silk patchwork tapestry depicting the artist. She is portrayed at the center of the composition looking at the viewer and wearing a yellow sundress with white trim and spaghetti straps. She holds a trowel in her right hand and a basket of produce in her left. Behind her are the silhouettes of dark trees and a bright blue sky with white clouds. Surrounding her for the lower half of the composition are plants with red and off-white stems, and yellow, pale blue, green and brown leaves. The lower right corner of the composition has been left incomplete intentionally.

I Am: Contemporary African Women Artists, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., June 20, 2019 - April 3, 2022

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