Céline Siani Djiakoua

The Untouched Collection 2021
Bromley House Library, Nottingham

This installation in Bromley House private Library was part of a project started in February 2020 and supported by the Arts Council.​ It was offered to the users of the library for a month.
Drawing from the library’s 19th-century collection of traveling books, the research lead during a residency examined illustrations of African nature. “Untouched” until then, the collection raised critical questions about its status and the broader discourse on de/colonisation. As the pandemic interrupted the project, the events following the death of George Floyd came to add matter and depth to the work and emphasise the necessity of reflexion and action. Drawing on her personal responses to the research process and life events and experiences, Céline Siani Djiakoua presented a piece that moves within the realms of cultural history, personal narrative and the collective unconscious. She created a series of booklets, which contained printed drawings, botanical prints, articles extract, words and images, a music piece and some Augmented Reality experiences.

Digital version of the work here.