Textile, Turbo

Jorge Lizarazo, owner and founder of the Colombia-based textile firm Hechizoo, created the psychedelic pattern of this textile, Turbo, by employing a polysilk warp and acetate ribbon weft. The pattern is based on Latin American costumes worn during religious rituals that include the drinking a hallucinogenic herb, yagé. According to tradition, the ritual helps the practitioner see and remember their ancestors.

Much like another Hechizoo textile in the collection, Marea, a black nylon and copper textile intended as a decorative panel or window curtain, Turbo is meant to interact with interior spaces rather than overpower them—much in the spirit of the Bauhaus master weavers Anni Albers and Gunta Stölzl. Lizarazo’s original work as an architect has influenced his textiles in terms of structural clarity and use of materials. His design work also benefits from his staff’s diverse expertise in the rich weaving traditions of their region. Lizarazo trains his staff to work with new and unusual materials that complement the often understated and basic textile structure. Man-made materials such as wire, nylon, and polyester ribbon are integrated with natural materials such as silk, agave, cumare, and penca, to create contemporary but sophisticated products.

Textile, Turbo; Colombia; 100% poly-silk warp and 100% acetate ribbon weft; H x W: 151.1 x 214.6 cm (59 1/2 in. x 7 ft. 1/2 in.); Gift of Hechizoo and Cristina Grajales Gallery, New York; 2011-57-2