Avail @westspace ‘s fundraiser exhibition
Labour & Love, opening 9th May
miss u already!
Steel and aluminium coated in green/brown/red/black/glitter spray paint
Approx 60 x 60cm
Designed, cut, welded, drilled, engraved by me ;)
w/ help & thx to @adlfringe x @fab_workshop residency mentors @jenmthws@natpenney & David McMurray
🛸
Brown Pillars II, 2025, installation view at the Incinerator Gallery. Photographed by Tom McCammon
My exhibition smelled like cardamom
🪡
Dhaka muslin is a legendary, ultra-fine fabric historically produced in the Bengal region, known for being incredibly light and sheer, with a thread count of up to 1,200. The craft declined due to colonial policies and the loss of the unique phuti karpas cotton and skilled weavers. Efforts are underway to revive it by cultivating the phuti karpas plant and developing modern weaving techniques, though achieving the original quality remains a major challenge.
Dhaka muslin became the choice of the aristocracy in Europe after European traders arrived in India in the sixteenth century and started taking Dhaka muslin to Europe.
The Industrial revolution brought machine-made cloth in Europe which could not match the quality of Indian cloth but was cheaper and could be made in less time. While the British took away cotton from India, they flooded the country with cheap cloth made in textile factories of Lancashire. It even took out the Mexican textile industry.
ʙʀᴏᴡɴ ᴘɪʟʟᴀʀꜱ ɪɪ
Installation, 2025
Brown Pillars is an ongoing body of work by artist Aida Azin that interrogates colonial hierarchies within the arts. The project was first presented in 2019 at Firstdraft Gallery, Sydney, where it critiqued institutional racism in the art world. In 2025, Aida has reworked Brown Pillars to examine the overlooked and appropriated cultural production and labour relations shaped by the Global South and exploited by the British Empire.
This project was supported by the Government of South Australia and CreateSA. It was presented in Boadle Hall at the Incinerator Gallery in October 2025.
Thank you to the @incinerator_gallery especially curators @mjflamiano and @jakeadamtreacy@adlfringe x @fab_workshop
All my love to Nat, Jenn and Muzz for the design, engineering, workshop and (spiritual) guidance that they generously provided.
Natalie Penney @natpenney designed the laser cut steel base for my pillars after many hours of discussion!
Thank you to @createsa_ for their generous funding across this project,
@tildy_davis for her amazing soft sculptures,
@soypiccolopls for her brilliant writing vision,
@hyphenated_projects for space to create,
@biancawinata for her mentoring,
@jamesnguyens for artistic insight,
@emmalinezanelli for her strong arms,
@johnsprintcentre for their printing power
These photographs were taken by the talented @tommccammon
This project breathed new life into my practice and made me remember who I am. Thank you to everyone who helped me move forward throughout!
SHOPWORLD by Palengke Girl
Friday 13th March 2026
2:00pm - 6:00pm
fab workshop
12 King William Street
Kent Town S.A.
Kaurna Yarta
Exhibition opening / open studio curated by Aida Azin
@aidaplebaum
**A visual arts exhibition inspired by the vibrant experience of shopping at a Philippine produce market, known in Tagalog as the palengke.
Through painting and installation, it reimagines the tactile, sensory act of ‘shop browsing’ as a space for play and imagination.
Featuring works by artists based in the Philippines, it highlights creative makers who express their unique, multilayered identities through art and street culture.
Curated by Aida Azin, this deeply personal project is rooted in cultural connection and joy.
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SHOPWORLD will be open by appointment following the opening. Please get in touch :)
Support and thanks to fab Workshop and The Adelaide Fringe
@adlfringe@fab_workshop
Artists involved can be found @palen9ke.9irl
