Tyra Naidoo -
ENOUGH PROTECTION

04.11.23 – 22.11.23
Solo Exhibition at
Kalashnikovv Gallery,
Johannesburg

EXHIBITION STATEMENT

Enough Protection explores the interconnected forces of protection and spirituality present in the social and material history of henna. Commonly associated with decorative designs on the skin, the art form originally functioned as a medicinal aid, but due to its striking pigment, ephemeral stain and malleable form, it soon became symbolic of divine protection too.

Henna historically represents the anthropological concept of protection of and by the supernatural, which is in a constant state of duality. The material was believed to both attract and resist; to shield and entrap; to dangerously teeter the line of sublime beauty. The works in this show investigate these beliefs and the rituals surrounding henna, re-imagining the mythology as a space of modern reflection with ancient spirituality.

Throughout the works, the central thread is the henna. In the process of making, the expansive abilities of the material have been studied. Through the experimentation of ancient techniques of henna art combined with contemporary art mediums, the sensitive plant-based paste reveals its capacity for shapeshifting as it transforms vastly in colour, viscosity, permanence and granulation.
In creating these different forms of henna, the methodology perpetuates the act of ritual henna art it is historically intertwined with.

As homage, which includes the education and celebration of the traditional body art form, the performance grants the audience the opportunity to experience henna. The artist relinquishes her role to the viewer and plays the role of the canvas, believing that she is under the protection of the henna and that the exchange between her and the ‘artists’ is sacred regardless of potential profanity. Much like the role of the deific as understood within the mythology, the artist exists in a dual state of as she offers and receives – embodying the two faces of the exhibition title.