Article 14

Irene Pérez

website@moadoph.gov.au — Mon, 15 Oct 2018 02:53:48 +0000

Irene Pérez website@moadop… Mon, 10/15/2018 - 13:53

Irene Pérez is from Terrassa, Spain. She is a feminist visual artist whose works explore concepts of cultural and social identity, gender, language, education and motherhood as activism. Irene’s interest in working with textiles stems from both her family’s history—almost all the elder members of her family worked in the textile industry—and her interest in a slow process of production and the material characteristics they embody.

After becoming the mother to a girl in 2010, her approach to art-making changed substantially. Not only did she become a feminist activist, but she also started questioning her own approach to the goals of art-making. Thus, for her last three exhibition projects, Irene designed a series of activities, workshops, and community networking events that take art objects as the starting point for a broader dialogue on socio-political issues.

Furthermore, she has been the co-creator of Mitja Subversiva (Subversive Knitting), a feminist craftivist group that meets biweekly at the co-op bookstore La Caníbal in Barcelona city, Spain, to exchange knowledge and to discuss gender and socio-economic issues in order to create textile-based projects. Pérez also has designed and is the lead instructor of an embroidery and weaving workshop for patients of the acute psychiatric unit at the University Hospital Mútua de Terrassa, which takes place at the Textile Museum and Documentation Centre in the same city. Last but not least, Irene collaborated in the Revolució Tèxtil project, which maps the local, ethical and responsible textile production and consumption in the city of Terrassa.

Irene Pérez

Catalan

Spain

Catalan, diverse Spanish communities

This issue resonates with me because of the Syrian war refugees in Europe and because of the history of Spain. I decided to depict two holding hands to represent the urgency to assist every person in need that arrives to a foreign territory.

I used five different fabrics sewn together to represent borders between lands. The text, in Catalan (one of the three languages I speak), and the image are embroidered crossing over the borders. This is to show human decency and solidarity should prevail above any bureaucratic and political division of the land.

The fabrics have significance as well. They come from scraps left over after a designer friend produced her clothing line. The original fabrics were several kilos of clothes she found at an abandoned textile factory in our hometown. So these fabrics are not only recycled and reused twice, they are directly connected to the history of the textile industry of Terrassa, Spain.

UDHR Article

Article 14

Quilt

Red quilt

Kristy Thorburn

website@moadoph.gov.au — Mon, 15 Oct 2018 05:08:27 +0000

Kristy Thorburn website@moadop… Mon, 10/15/2018 - 16:08

Kristy Thorburn is a registered art therapist and accredited mental health social worker practicing in south-east Queensland, Australia. Kristy’s work includes working with children and families in creative ways to address trauma, anxiety and to help families alleviate life stressors. Kristy has worked with asylum seekers and refugees within the public school system and within several community organisations. Kristy is passionate about improving Australia’s response to people seeking asylum both on a human-to-human basis and within our federal government policies.

Kristy Thorburn

English

Australia

Australian

I was drawn to this project due to my commitment to social justice and passion for creative pursuits. The human right to seek and be provided asylum is a tricky issue in Australia right now, with our horrendous policies for offshore processing on Nauru and Manus Island. I’m pretty distressed about the psychological and physiological impact of indefinitely detaining people in detention camps and refusing to offer asylum in Australia for those who have sought help via the sea. It’s entirely unconscionable. I feel quite ashamed to be alive in a time when we are treating people, particularly vulnerable people, in this dreadful way.

The materials used in this project were found from preloved sources, in order to place as little pressure on the Earth’s finite resources as possible.

I hope those who see this project take some time to reflect upon how we can shake things up and make some big changes.

UDHR Article

Article 14

Quilt

Green quilt

Kate Ahmad

website@moadoph.gov.au — Mon, 15 Oct 2018 05:28:58 +0000

Kate Ahmad website@moadop… Mon, 10/15/2018 - 16:28

Born in 1988, Canberra-based self-made contemporary artist Kate Ahmad currently woks with thread ‘sketching’, watercolour paints, botanical material, photography, recycled and raw fabrics.

Kate draws inspiration from her surrounds, love of nature and nostalgia for Canberra and its surrounding landscapes. She is passionate about having a full understanding and respect for the craft of embroidery in order to disrupt and manipulate it.

As a mother, Kate strives to teach and learn from her kids as she navigates the challenges of being part of a mixed-race family. She finds that expressing herself through different media allows her to reflect on her upbringing and connect to her adopted culture. She is currently inspired by the regional variances in fabrics used to create saris across the Indian sub-continent and the use of rich embellishments on the fabrics to explore colour in its many vibrant scales.

Kate Ahmad

English

Australia

Australian

After I read Article 14, the word ‘enjoy’ haunted my thoughts—is it possible to enjoy being in a new country when you have been persecuted and driven away from the place you call home?

I knew I had to focus on Australia’s treatment of refugees and people seeking asylum, a process that has become increasingly inhumane since overseas detention was implemented. As a mother, it is particularly distressing that the country I call home sees it fit to detain children in conditions very similar to jails. I cannot imagine what traumas these kids will carry when they finally see freedom.

The most important thing I could do was place the words clearly, emphasising the word ‘enjoy’. I decided to ‘drain’ the colour out of the words to highlight the injustice of our government and continued torment of vulnerable people. I used recycled sari material given to me by my mother-in-law as the backing for the embroidery.

UDHR Article

Article 14

Quilt

Blue quilt

Mare Maticevski

website@moadoph.gov.au — Mon, 15 Oct 2018 05:48:59 +0000

Mare Maticevski website@moadop… Mon, 10/15/2018 - 16:48

Mare Maticevski is currently undertaking a Master’s in writing and publishing and is a passionate educator, librarian and creative with a strong focus on social justice. The power of human stories embolden her as she strives to contribute to and share stories of diversity. She expresses her activism via multidisciplinary creative works, including writing, performance, filmmaking, printmaking, puppetry, photography and fibre arts.

Mare migrated to Australia as a nine-month-old baby and experiences her identity as constant negotiation towards belonging. She resides on land that belongs to First Nations people and pays respect to Elders past, present and emerging.

Mare Maticevski

Macedonian

Australia

Macedonian

My block uses a muslin baby wrap that belonged to my daughter. It was a comforting presence through my daughter’s life, taken everywhere. The fibres are very delicate from extended use, making stitching quite difficult. Also difficult is the sadness of the journey of the refugee parent and child. The delicate fibres symbolise how delicate and vulnerable babies are, especially on such a journey.

My father migrated to Australia seeking a better life, leaving behind his pregnant wife in what was then Macedonia, in the former Yugoslavia. He sent a wrap as a gift for his unborn baby. I was wrapped in this when, aged nine months, I first met my dad when I arrived under an assisted passage program. Apparently I stretched my arms out to him.

I strongly support refugees, the right to seek asylum, the right of families to not be separated by unjust government policies. Children have no say. We must comfort and support the most vulnerable in our world.

UDHR Article

Article 14

Quilt

Yellow quilt