Toronto-based Kurdish artist Roda Medhat presents a new solo exhibition, 'From the Loom,' at Abbozzo Gallery in Toronto. The show features large-scale sculptures, textile works, and neon installations that blend digital fabrication and 3D scanning with traditional West Asian weaving techniques. Medhat draws imagery from Kurdish children's books, using an electronic Jacquard machine to weave motifs of boys riding horses into fabric. A key piece, 'The Sheep and the Chevrolet,' reimagines François Balsan's 1947 ethnographic travelogue, using 3D printing to create a monumental sheep atop a Chevrolet, subverting stereotypical Western views of Kurdish culture.
This exhibition matters because it challenges colonial-era narratives about Kurdish identity through contemporary art and technology. Medhat's work bridges traditional craft and digital innovation, asking how cultural stories are translated into new synthetic languages. By reclaiming and recontextualizing archival material, the artist offers a playful yet critical reconceptualization of Kurdish heritage, contributing to broader conversations about cultural preservation, representation, and the intersection of memory and material in the visual arts.