My artistic practice weaves together collage, textile, and installation, using 19th century black and white photographs and botanical illustration. At its core, my work, delves into layered concept of identity, investigating themes of belonging and un-belonging. I am deeply motivated by the need to confront the enduring legacies of colonialism, unravelling how this complex past continues to shape global dynamics of race, culture, politics, land, economics, and society.

Central to my practice is the exploration of the racial dimensions of historical imagery, questioning whose stories are preserved and celebrated and whose narratives remain obscured. This inquiry extends into the realm of ethnobotany, where I investigate the intertwined histories of plants and people. I examine the roles women have played in plant exploration and the extraction of botanical knowledge from indigenous women to serve colonial interests. Through archival research, I explore the act of collecting and cataloguing drawing connections between the classification of plants and the racial categorisation of humans. The linguistic heritage of plant naming, encompassing both Latin and Indigenous languages, also features prominently in my work.

Recently, I have been expanding the textile aspects of my practice. Initially, I started by transforming my mixed media collages into embroidered pieces which then led to be awarded a fellowship where I learnt to weave for a month. This experience has inspired me to delve deeper into the traditions of textile work, particularly the rich techniques and histories of practices from South America, Africa and Asia. As I move forward, I am excited to explore how textile traditions can further deepen my engagement with themes of identity, history, land and belonging.

Website: www.alidarodrigues.com