This workshop was presented at the exhibition “Velvet Society, Power and Glamour in 90s Damascus” curated by Litehouse Gallery, shown at P21 Gallery.
Participants learned to rework a vintage photograph, giving new life and narrative to it by a stitching and weaving process that sparked new visual conversations with time and memory.
The workshop was also hosted at The Elizabeth Gareth Anderson all female secondary school as part of the show community outreach and Miranda Harris, Head of Arts Faculty says:
‘The students really enjoyed the workshop. They liked developing a new embroidery stitch, some saying how useful it will be as it allows them to add embroidered text to an image. It was great for me to see how some students truly engaged with their own feelings about an image. This has led to a growing confidence that I have seen in valuing their own views and not just thinking that there is a ‘correct art answer’. This is an area of development for my own practice. I need to allow opportunities to slow down in some lessons and allow time for students to explore and sometimes struggle with not knowing what to do with a view to them finding their own voice and valuing it.’
This event was supported by Counterpoints Arts, Refugee Week and funded by Arts Council England.