‘Black Gold’ was the name conferred on black pepper because of its immense value in ancient times. Paid for in gold during the Roman era, the quest for the spice also led to the exploration and colonisation of certain regions such as Kerala in southern India. Yasmin Jahan Nupur, a visual and performance artist from Bangladesh, leans into these histories of migration and global exchange for the 2025 Kochi-Muziris Biennale. Her interdisciplinary project, Black Gold, orchestrates installation, textile art and live performance to create an immersive environment, encouraging both interaction and collective reflection.

Given Kochi’s rich maritime history and role in global spice routes, the installation draws from the city’s coastal environment, its markets and stories of trade. It incorporates locally sourced materials and artisanal techniques such as Jamdani weaving, and cotton and silk embroidery.

The installation evokes the fragmented remains of a colonial ship through suspended handwoven textiles. Jamdani, muslin, and silk are embroidered with trade routes, colonial insignia, and motifs of spice-producing regions. Found maritime objects, ladders, ropes, and containers are also integrated to reference the physical labor and networks behind the trade.

Nupur elaborates that the performative element,

draws from embodied gestures, labor movements, and spoken word narratives that weave together oral histories and coastal soundscapes from Kerala. Through this sensory experience, the audience is invited to navigate the space and reflect on the dual nature of the spice trade, as both a source of cultural exchange and colonial exploitation.

The soundscape includes field recordings, such as oceanic sounds, from the Malabar Coast, where Kochi is located. Through these elements, the work seeks to reactivate the city’s historic role as a melting pot of cultures and as a witness to the entangled legacies of colonial power and resistance.

The collaboration with local weavers, artisans, and performers serves to shape Black Gold into a community project and a living dialogue between past and present. The site-specific work connects material memory, embodied histories, and the ongoing discussions around decolonialisation.