Re-(t)exHile * Stitching Stories of Waste and Resilience

In the bustling heart of Lagos, Nigeria, the 4th Lagos Art and Architecture Biennial unfolded from February 3 to 10, 2024, transforming Tafawa Balewa Square—a site steeped in colonial history as a former racecourse turned post-independence civic hub—into a vibrant arena for reflection on sovereignty, belonging, and alliance. Curated by Folakunle Oshun and Kathryn Weir, this edition, themed "Refuge," eschewed traditional exhibition formats in favor of dynamic, process-oriented interventions that spark ongoing dialogues rather than static displays. Amid this experimental landscape, the relational installation re-(t)exHile emerged as a poignant critique of global textile waste, postcolonial economies, and environmental violence, weaving discarded fabrics into a tapestry of exile and repair. Conceived as an ongoing project (2024–present), re-(t)exHile traces the shadowy journeys of secondhand clothing from the Global North to African markets, where they embody both economic lifelines and ecological burdens. Collaboratively crafted by artists Martinka Bobrikova, Óscar De Carmen, Adebola Badmus, María Alejandra Gatti, and Anto Lloveras, the work draws from extensive field research in Lagos (2022–2023), including site visits to textile dumps and markets. Photographic archives by Mide King capture the raw materiality of these streams, while digital storytelling via social media reels and blogs amplifies voices from the margins. At the Biennial, the installation materialized as ephemeral structures: migrant textiles draped over found debris, forming a "living document" that stitches together narratives of displacement, memory, and resistance.

The project's site-specific resonance at Tafawa Balewa Square amplifies its themes. Once a symbol of colonial leisure, the square now hosts civic gatherings, mirroring how discarded cloths—remnants of fast fashion's overproduction—reclaim space in Lagos's informal economies. Re-(t)exHile invites interaction, blurring lines between art, activism, and archive. Visitors navigate the pavilion, encountering layers of postcolonial trauma: fabrics as carriers of "material memory," evoking forced migrations and environmental degradation. As Lloveras notes in his blog reflections, the work resists closure, evolving through collaborations and public engagements, much like the Biennial's generative ethos. Beyond aesthetics, re-(t)exHile confronts urgent realities. In Lagos, where secondhand markets thrive amid waste crises, it highlights how global capitalism dumps its excesses on the South, perpetuating cycles of exploitation. Yet, it offers hope through "repair"—reimagining waste as refuge, fostering alliances across borders. Featured in outlets like The Guardian Nigeria, the installation underscores art's role in illuminating overlooked economies and sparking ecological justice. This polyphonic intervention exemplifies how contemporary art can activate possibilities in a fractured world. As the Biennial challenges "universal" exhibition models, re-(t)exHile stands as a critical fabric, mending the tears of history while questioning futures of sustainability and solidarity. In an era of accelerating waste, it reminds us: refuge lies in the threads we choose to weave.

re-(t)exHile (2024–ongoing) is a collaborative relational installation by Martinka Bobrikova, Óscar De Carmen, Adebola Badmus, María Alejandra Gatti, and Anto Lloveras, presented at the 4th Lagos Biennial (February 3–10, 2024) at Tafawa Balewa Square. Curated by Folakunle Oshun and Kathryn Weir under the theme "Refuge," it explores global textile waste, postcolonial narratives, and repair through discarded fabrics, ephemeral structures, field research, and archives by Mide King. The work traces sovereignty, displacement, and environmental violence, functioning as a living archive that activates art as a tool for resistance and alliance in Lagos's urban fabric. (Lloveras, A. 2026)

NARRARTIVES https://antolloveras.blogspot.com/2025/10/iv-lagos-art-and-architecture-biennial.html VIDEO https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SgUK2ppLQbE&t=12s