NOPAL is a textile environmental installation inviting local people from the Umecuaro community to come together and take some time out of their daily activities to create, share and spend time together. Local people have been involved in making a joint project inspired by the shape of an endemic cactus species: Nopal is a common name in Mexican Spanish for Opuntia cactus pads. Natural dyes (spices, flowers, earth and veggies) transform recycled textiles, which are stretched onto a structure made of woven vines, to create a cascade of leaves.
The project has seen the participation of some local women and children with whom I've been engaged in an exchange of knowledge with a focus on textile techniques and the use of local natural materials for dyeing. The artwork is placed at the entrance of Umecuaro on the stone wall of an ancient water dam that provides water to the village.