Bayt Al Sh'ar - House of Hair

‘Bayt Al Sha’ar – House of Hair’ (2025) is an ambitious textile sculpture by visual arts researcher Lucy Orta, inspired by the traditional Bedouin dwelling and developed through fieldwork undertaken in Saudi Arabia. The work investigates how vernacular architecture and weaving traditions—particularly the Saudi Arabian practice of Al Sadu—can inform ways of living in harmony with extreme environments.

After meeting Al Sadu weavers, rather than hand weaving, the tapestry walls of the sculpture were developed during a period of exploratory research at the TextielLab digital weaving laboratory in the Textile Museum Tilburg. The outcome is a series of nine visually complex jacquard panels (170 × 170 cm each), woven in wool, recycled PET and silver thread and incorporating over one hundred colours, innovating traditional weaving capabilities. The tapestry panels are assembled using traditional methods to form the walls of a tent based on the Bedouin structure known as bayt al sha’ar. The canvas roof is covered in wool felt, to create the effect of the sheep fibre (hair).

The visual iconography of the jacquard panels forms a speculative narrative depicting a world reshaped by desertification and resource scarcity—where conflict and displacement become increasingly inevitable. Yet amidst these imagined ruins, resilient desert species and mythic figures emerge, offering gestures of hope and renewal. The tent-sculpture stands as an emblem of migration and adaptation in a world transformed by climate disruption.

The imagery is constructed through a process of collage, combining Lucy's field research photography with hand drawing, and assembled using digital editing techniques. The collage compositions include desert landscapes from Saudi Arabia, diverse ecosystems (in the Amazon and the Al’Ula desert), desert plant species, and celestial motifs referencing Bedouin cultural symbolism. These elements are interwoven with open-source imagery of ruined environments to construct a layered visual narrative.

The tapestries at the entrance depict Gaia, the earth goddess, who welcomes viewers into the majlis space. Surrounded by constellations and the Pleiades star cluster, she evokes ancient traditions of celestial navigation. Moving around the tent, subsequent tapestries introduce desert dwellers such as the Imperial Eagle and the Flying Man—figures capable of surviving hostile conditions. Other scenes depict a bird-like character dragging a parachute across a devastated landscape and another carrying personal belongings while emerging from rubble. The final panels present the Water Gatherer and the Seedling Spirit, nurturing new life within desolate terrain. The narrative cycle ultimately returns to Gaia, suggesting regeneration and the possibility of alternative futures.

‘Bayt Al Sha’ar – House of Hair’ was commissioned for the 2025 British Textile Biennial (2 October – 2 November 2025) and forms the pivotal artwork in the survey exhibition ‘Homo Mondialis’, which showcases Lucy Orta’s textile-led practice over the last twenty-years.

• https://www.studio-orta.com/en/artwork/9...
• https://britishtextilebiennial.co.uk/eve...