Hat c. 20th century

This hat, made by Gejia, Miao, is a wild explosion of color and texture. Just imagine the hours of labor, the careful stitching and arrangement of beads, the vibrant, almost frantic energy of the red fringe contrasting with the cool, precise geometry of the patterns below. I can almost feel the artist’s hand at work. Maybe they started with a clear idea, a traditional design passed down through generations, but then let their intuition take over, embellishing, improvising, losing themselves in the process. Those silver lines, swirling and precise, remind me of Agnes Martin's obsessive grids, but here they're grounded, earthy, part of something functional and alive. Think about how this object was made to be worn, how it moves and catches the light, a celebration of the human body and spirit. It reminds me that all art, whether it's a painting on canvas or a hat made of fabric and thread, is about connection – to our history, our community, and ourselves.