Turban c. late 20th century

This vibrant turban, by an anonymous artist, has found its home at the Minneapolis Institute of Art. Imagine the artist carefully imprinting those zig-zagging lines, a dance of red and white, onto the fabric. I’m thinking about the artist’s hand moving, the way they must’ve felt the material, the weight, the give. What were they thinking? Were they humming a tune? Getting lost in the repetition of the pattern? That gesture, the stripe, becomes a record of time, intention, a conversation between the artist and the material. It reminds me of artists like Sheila Hicks who push the boundaries between painting and textile, using thread as line, color as emotion. I can also imagine the impact the turban has when wrapped around someone's head, giving them confidence and signifying something about them. Artists are always in dialogue, borrowing, riffing, and expanding on ideas – it’s like a continuous game of telephone across time. We embrace the unfinished and uncertain, finding new ways to see and feel the world.