Hiromi Tango: Promised

Overview

Welcome to the world of Hiromi Tango. It’s a sprawling wonderland of textile and colour. Walk into Sullivan+Strumpf and you’ll be confronted by Promised, a bright array of mixed media, full of twists and tangles. Sprouting woolly limbs and fabric baubles of almost every imaginable texture, these sculptural works are hung with bells, paper cranes, doilies, maps and letters. Many of them frame a hard neon disc, emblazoned with a single word. They look like fantastical creatures lying low, or vines crawling out of control.

Emotional awakening is at the core of Tango’s practice. She aims to create rich sensory experiences, excavating the inner content of the psyche in order to create an evocative whirlwind of everyday materials. There are little messages of anxiety and affirmation discreetly tucked into the visual chaos of her work. One says “you are good at what you do as it all comes from the heart,” whilst another says, “you never ring me.” There’s also her cathartic ritual of reaching out to strangers, requesting their personal stories. Hover a little longer over Tango’s tightly wound tentacles, and you’ll unearth the collaborative threads of her practice.

On this note, there is a strong therapeutic dimension to Promised. Tango often reflects on the strictures of her small-town upbringing and feelings of alienation during her years as a student. In recent years, she has sought to connect with members of the community who have suffered mental illnesses. From this point, her art has become a project of psychological healing.

Breaking Cycle (Lizard Tail) is an example of her attempts to exorcise negativity. Covered in velvety horns, this work has an animalistic appearance. If not for the vibrant hues and sparkling sequins, it might be slightly menacing. By amputating the toxic tail, she infers that emotional pain can be pried out of the body and manifest as an aesthetic and tangible form. This then becomes a kind of coping mechanism. Also, with her trademark technique of weaving and winding, it’s as if Tango is caught up in an exercise of Freudian repression, compulsively trying to tie down her unruly demons.

The term 'outsider art' has been tentatively attached to Tango's practice. Though a hot trend in the contemporary art market, this is an ethically fraught label to apply and might not do any favours. Nevertheless, Promised is well worth a look in. Comprising of everything you'd find in a kindergarten craft class but amplified into staggeringly intricate sculptures, Tango's exhibition offers a lush jungle of endless exploration and discovery.