Community weaving project selected as a Finalist in the Alice Prize

Kirrily’s community weaving project Sextillion ways to kneel and kiss the ground has been selected a finalist in the prestigious Alice Prize.

Woven from raffia, bangalow palm, dianella, jute and cotton cord over three months, this installation is a joyful, sacred space in which diverse people of Alice Springs/Mparntwe have contributed part of themselves – their labour, laughter, creativity and care – to a process of collective making. Emerging from over 250 people coming together in free weaving workshops, it explores the potential of making to nurture the profound magic of human connection. Weaving across generations, stories, languages and beliefs, it celebrates the deep meaning of mutuality in our everyday lives.

 The title reworks Rumi’s suggestion that there are 100 ways to kiss the ground by gifting the world what we love. It reflects the delight when one young weaver discovered the bigger number ‘sextillion’ and filled the workshop with his wild giggling – one of many joyful moments embedded in this piece.