Cecilia Vicuña: Foraging Quipu

A large-scale participatory installation by Cecilia Vicuña bringing together plant matter, found objects and materials gathered by local communities through a public call for contributions. About Created through a public call for contributions, Foraging Quipu is a large-scale participatory installation by Cecilia Vicuña, bringing together plant matter, found objects and materials gathered by local communities. First realised at the Irish Museum of Modern Art (IMMA) in Dublin in 2025, the installation will be recreated at Whitechapel Gallery through a new public invitation to collect and contribute materials. Visitors are invited to gather dry plant matter and lightweight debris from their surroundings, creating a collective archive of ecological traces, chance encounters and personal acts of attention. The resulting installation will weave together these contributions into a suspended quipu, a form inspired by the ancient Andean system of knotted cords used for recording and communication. Throughout her practice, Vicuña has explored the relationships between people, place, memory and the natural world. Foraging Quipu extends this approach by transforming everyday acts of collecting into a shared artistic gesture, bringing together materials shaped by different environments and histories. Branches, seeds, roots, fungi, textiles, fragments of wood, plastics and other found objects coexist within the work, creating a poetic assembly that reflects both ecological interdependence and human responsibility towards the environments we inhabit. Foraging Quipu is presented alongside Cecilia Vicuña: Living Threads, the artist's first major UK survey exhibition. The open call for Foraging Quipu is now live. Visitors are invited to contribute dried plant matter and found materials for inclusion in the installation, with collections accepted at Whitechapel Gallery 2-21 Sep 2026. See below for information on how to participate and guidance on responsible collecting. Cecilia Vicuña invites you to collect plant matter and found debris from your surroundings for inclusion in a new artwork which will be installed in her forthcoming exhibition, Cecilia Vicuña: Living Threads from 7 October – 14 February 2027. The vegetable debris must be small and lightweight – dry plants, fungi, sticks, branches, seeds, roots. In addition, other materials of industrial or animal origin such as, wool, fabrics, plastics, metals, toy remains, fragments of painted wood, or biomaterials are welcome, which should be small and lightweight. Responsible Collecting Tips: • Collect only dead and dry plant material found abandoned on the ground in public places, where this may be allowed, and/or if it presents itself on your personal property. • Select material that is no longer living or attached to a living plant. For example: seed pods that have fallen to the ground, stray twigs or branches underfoot, etc. • Please refrain from collecting plant matter from public spaces or city, authority, or government owned and operated sites. Collected items may be dropped off at Whitechapel Gallery reception area during 9am-6pm from 2 to 21 September 2026. Read more Toggle Installation Mixed media