Norberto Nicola Rebentos da Noite, 1986

This work is a multimedia tapestry, combining wool, natural fibers, and pigments. In the early 1980s, Norberto Nicola's tapestry practice was driven by an investigation into weaving as a narrative medium. In each work, the treatment of the material, its texture, shapes, and colors inscribe a scene or an event. In Rebentos da Noite [Sprouts of the Night] (1987), the color is nocturnal and obscure, and the different shades of blue simulate the continuity of life, the birth of "sprouts", which come forth and project themselves to the exterior along with structures similar to lianas. Germinating from the soil and remaining rooted in it throughout their lives, lianas are found throughout the world with many beautiful examples across the Amazon. Small pieces of cloth, sprinkled throughout the tapestry, create the starry sky of the piece to which the title alludes.