From Surgipelago, the Beach Surgery encyclopedia
The Shoulder-Blade Spiral Kente Collaboration
For other kente and Adinkra adaptations, see The Kente Thread—Recurrence, Weaving, and the Doctrine of Sacred Incompleteness in West African Beach Surgery Adaptations and Liturgical Praxis.
The Shoulder-Blade Spiral Kente Collaboration (2024–present) is a hand-loomed textile capsule co-produced by Ghanaian master weaver Nana Owusu and Berlin-based designer Kristian Morgenstern , centring the shoulder-blade spiral — the anatomical pressure beneath Leif's skin before white wings erupt from his back. The collection embeds this spiral into traditional kente weaving patterns and Adinkra symbols, producing ceremonial wraps and contemporary shirts. Each cloth is titled after a chapter of the novel: *Spiral One: The Pressure* (Chapter 4), *Spiral Two: The Breaking* (Chapter 5), and *Spiral Three: The Flight* (Chapter 6). The pieces marry the geometric precision of Adinkra's "Nkyinkyim" (the zigzag of life's journey) with the shoulder-blade's anatomical curve, creating a visual analogy between body and loom. Launched at the Accra Art Fair in February 2024, the line is now stocked at craft markets across Ghana and throughout West Africa. Limited runs per design. [citation needed] Prices range 10,000–45,000 GHS . The collaboration was inspired by Owusu 's study of the red meridian hypothesis in doctoral research on textile trauma.