Affordable ▷ America del Sur and Africa, Diptych by Ana Seggiaro, 2013 | Embroidery Painting

In the mid-2000s, Ana Seggiaro made her first small-scale collage works on paper. Starting from pages of books, maps, and scores, she carries out the first series intervened through embroidery and painting. In these works she finds the universe of cartography, using maps as supports for the construction of imaginary geographies. This search leads her to tackle larger works. Thus, she recovers old school maps worn by use, where the black rubber acquires a broken texture, generating a topography like that of skin dried by the sun. She intervenes in these maps with abstract figures and images of paper airplanes that fly over unknown landscapes.

Seggiaro’s reinterprets european artistic traditions, infusing them with her own embroidered mark, drawing inspiration from classic prints by masters such as Albrecht Dürer, Giovanni Battista Piranesi and Bernhard Albinus. Her creative process is both meticulous and layered: she begins by researching historical images, which she then digitally reconfigures into intricate collages that form the basis of each piece. The final compositions are printed onto artistic canvases, where they are enriched with delicate hand embroidery and, more recently, vibrant paintings. This interplay of traditional and contemporary techniques reflects her dynamic artistic evolution: from a pictorial base to a greater use of diverse materials and media, allowing her to create visually appealing and deeply evocative works, focusing on themes such as authorial resignification, the body as cartography, intimacy and imagined landscapes.

Embroidery on canvas. Overall Image size: 130 cm H x 194 cm W. Individual size: 130 cm H x 97 cm W

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This dynamic artwork features two panels, each presenting a distinct yet interconnected visual narrative. The left panel is a chaotic swirl of vibrant, intertwining lines in red, green, and yellow over a dark backdrop, suggestive of frenetic energy or pathways. These lines evoke a sense of movement and complexity, hinting at unseen forces or networks. The right panel contrasts this with a more structured yet equally vibrant composition of colorful circles distributed across a map of Africa. The circles, in various sizes and colors, create a rich tapestry, highlighting diversity and connection within the continent. The prominent red circle stands out, capturing attention and perhaps symbolizing a focal point or epicenter. Together, these panels convey themes of interconnection, chaos, and unity, emphasized by the stark, map-like background that roots the abstract elements in a geographical context. The artwork invites viewers to explore the interplay of disorder and organization.