A Weaving Made of Braids:
Igshaan Adams’ Upheaved
Isaac Facio
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Igshaan Adams (South African, born 1982) | Upheaved | 2018 | Polyester, polypropylene, cotton and viscose rayon ropes, cotton and polyester cord, wood and plastic beads, and wire | 305.8 × 231.1 cm (120 × 91 in. | The Art Institute of Chicago | Purchased with funds provided by Artworkers Retirement Society, 2019.1244 | Image from the Art Institute of Chicago object web page: https://www.artic.edu/artworks/250565/upheaved
Plain Weave
If we start by following a single line of fiber through a basic plain weave, the lines meet in two directions: the “vertical” line is the warp (shown in black) and the “horizontal” line is the weft (shown in red). These lines interlace at right angles. Each weft line travels over and under each warp line in a balanced one-to-one pattern, alternating at every pass.
Igshann Adams’s Upheaved is an unconventional tapestry. Handwoven, plain weave, in a slit-and-interlocking tapestry weave using repurposed, mass-produced materials, the work is constructed from polyester, polypropylene, cotton, and viscose rayon ropes; cotton and polyester cords; wood and plastic beads; and wire cords and wires.
As we follow the line of fiber through the work, each material changes the color, dimension, texture, and pattern of the hanging.
1) When we follow the line of fiber in Upheaved, we see that it is woven in a tapestry weave, with slit and interlocking color fields. In a tapestry structure, the wefts do not run from selvedge-to-selvedge: from one edge of the weaving to the other. Instead, each weft line is woven in discrete areas of color and material. Lines of weft on the same path may interlock with their neighbors–interlocking tapestry weave—or stop short of them—leaving a void that opens as a slit between color fields. Following the line reveals a broken, shifting surface rather than a continuous band.
2) If we keep following the line more closely, we see that the weft does not behave like a typical plain-weave structure, where warp and weft lines are perpendicular. In Upheaved, the weft runs eccentrically in relation to the warp. Following the line of the weft shows gentle curves and angled paths, rather than a rigid grid.
3) When the tapestry is hung, we discover another twist: Adams chose to display Upheaved at a 90-degree rotation from the orientation in which it was woven. As it hangs, the warp is now horizontal and the weft is vertical. This rotation creates a visual “upheaval” of line, shape, and color orientation. The weft—now aligned with the hanging direction—becomes the discontinuous element, and as we follow the line up and down, we see breaks, joins, and shifts where we might expect continuity.
4) Looking one step closer and following the line of the warp, we see that the warp is made of paired fibers, with two warp threads acting together as one (shown in black).The weft is made from heavier cords (shown in red), each with its own inner interlacing structure. The simple crossing of warp and weft conceals more complex lines nested inside.
5) As we continue to look at the warp fibers, we find that each “line” is actually a ply of twelve cotton strands.
6) Each strand is spun in the Z-direction, and those strands are then plied together in the S-direction, creating a stronger, unified yarn. A single thread can be spun in an “S” or “Z” direction, and multiple threads can be twisted (plied) in either direction to form a thicker, stronger line of yarn.
7) When we follow the line of the weft cords, we discover that many are not simple yarns at all, but rather are tubular braids. These braids are oblique interlacements of threads–braids–some are built from 8 individual strands, others from 16.
8) Looking closely at each braid, we see that the fibers move diagonally–obliquely, not parallel and not at right angles. As the cord is built, they interlace, forming a hollow tube.
9) This illustration shows the production of a braid. Here, 16 bobbins travel along interlacing paths; each carrying filaments that converge at a central point, where their paths cross and lock into the braided structure.
10) Following the movement of the bobbins from above, each of the 16 bobbin moves in figure-eight paths around a central point. The repeated crossings of these lines of thread create the interlaced tube of cord.
11) When looking closely, you can see that some of the weft cords are braids composed of slit-film. This is likely recycled polymer that has been flattened and slit, then restructured into new material for the braid.
12) Examining the slit film at 500× magnification, the slit film shows an uneven, shredded-like surface, likely reflecting its origin as a recycled polymer. The “line” here is no longer smooth; it frays and fragments.
13) Other weft cords are hollow braids composed of 16 sheath-ends. When we follow any single line in these braids, we see a more densely interlaced structure, created by more strands crossing in tighter patterns.
14) A filament from a 16-sheath-end hollow braid, possibly made from polyester, imaged in normal light (left) and between crossed polars (right) at 220× magnification. Examining a single filament through different lighting conditions helps to reveal variations in its internal structure and optical properties.
15) In addition to braided cords, there are lines of knotted wire used as weft. As we follow these metallic lines, we encounter sharp turns, knots, and rigid bends, adding another kind of line—hard, reflective, and sculptural—to shape the weave.
16) Here, following the line means cutting across it. This detail shows a cross-section of a the internal structure of a metallic cord (1/8 S) encased in plastic casing at 500× magnification, revealing yet another level at which multiple lines and layers build the visual and material complexity in Upheaved.
For additional information about this work, see:
Hendrik Folkerts, ed., Igshaan Adams: Desire Lines, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago and Yale University Press, 2022).
Isaac Facio, “Anatomy of Memory: The Materiality and Structure of Igshaan Adams’s Upheaved,” in Hendrik Folkerts, ed., Igshaan Adams: Desire Lines, exh. cat. (Art Institute of Chicago and Yale University Press, 2022).
On view at the Art Institute of Chicago April 2 – August 1, 2022.
All designs, animations, and diagrams are © Isaac Facio, 2025
Credit is required when reproducing.
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