Press Releases

Santa Fe, NM – The first major exhibition showcasing the spectacular art of telephone wire weaving in any North American museum opens at the Museum of International Folk Art on November 17, 2024. 

iNgqikithi yokuPhica / Weaving Meanings: Telephone Wire Art from South Africa shares the histories of wire as an artistic medium in South Africa, from its use as a marker of social status in the 16th century, to the early introduction of colorful telephone wire as a recycled material, to the dazzling styles weavers create for local and international markets today. Wireworks in the exhibition, including izimbenge (beer pot lids), platters and plates, vessels, sculptures, and ceremonial items, demonstrate both the continuity and continuous development of wire-weaving as an innovative artistic tradition in South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal region. 

 Juxtaposing historic and contemporary artworks, the exhibition features a significant collection generously assembled and donated by David Arment and Jim Rimelspach, the David Arment Southern African Collection. Guest curator Dr. Elizabeth Perrill, one of the world’s foremost experts on Zulu ceramics, brings to the project more than 25 years of experience working with artists in South Africa.  

 This exhibition has also been shaped by a committee of Indigenous Knowledge Experts led by Muziwandile Gigaba, alongside Muziwandile Hadebe, Ntombifuthi Mwimule (Maphumulo), and Ntuthoko Khuzwayo. Weaving Meanings will foreground the voices of artists themselves through original video interviews and weaving demonstrations developed by a team of South African filmmakers, led by Zamo Mkhize, in collaboration with Perrill.  

 Lead Indigenous Knowledge Expert Muziwandile Gigaba shared, “In the process of creating iNgqikithi yokuPhica, artists have shared aspects of themselves to complement David Arment’s exquisite collection. The exhibition is a contribution towards the self-empowerment of Zulu artists and communities, reinforcing a strong sense of togetherness and humanity. I am honored to be part of this historic project.”  

 “Jim and I have been traveling to Africa for over 30 years, and our visits overlapped with the development of this art form and the emergence of so many talented master weavers”, said collector David Arment.  “We built this collection over many years and we are so excited to be sharing the art of telephone wire with the Museum and the world.”   The exhibition is supported by the International Folk Art Foundation, a grant from the William H. and Mattie Wattis Harris Foundation, David Arment and Jim Rimelspach, and the generosity of donors to the museum’s Exhibition Development Fund through the Museum of New Mexico Foundation.