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Building community relations through textile arts

Building community relations through textile arts

Tue, June 23, 2020

Roe Valley Arts and Cultural Centre in Limavady is delighted to announce the launch of a new exhibition developed from a cross community textile arts project.

The Triax Arpillera Dolls Exhibition follows on from a project with Conflict Textiles and the Bogside and Brandywell Initiative’s Peace Walls Programme (funded by International Fund for Ireland). Over the past two months, a group of women from the Triax area of Derry/Londondery have used textiles to explore human rights violations and our response to them. 

Participants were invited to create their own Arpillera Doll as part of the “Embracing Human Rights; Conflict Textiles Journey” exhibition.

Thanks to the innovation and dedication of curator Roberta Bacic and the Arts Centre team, the exhibition and  associated activities were moved online to ensure that everyone could still take part despite the social restrictions of the coronavirus pandemic.

Taking inspiration from pieces within the original exhibition, each woman created her own associated doll, using material that they could find in their household during the lockdown period. Alongside this, every participant expressed a message about the doll they created - many of these reflect upon personal experience and are incredibly moving to read.

The Mayor of Causeway Coast and Glens Borough Council Alderman Mark Fielding: “There has been great engagement with the Arpillera exhibition since it moved online, and I would like to thank all those who have helped to make it so successful, despite the challenges of the past few months.”

Esther Alleyne, Roe Valley Arts and Cultural Facilities Officer added: “The exhibition is incredibly beautiful and it is wonderful to see how it has developed and how the women from the Triax area have engaged so meaningfully in the work. It is hoped that this is the first step in their textiles journey and that those involved will now go on to create their own Derry-Londonderry themed arpillera.”

The exhibition can be viewed here until July 31st.

If you’re involved with a community group and would like to engage in an art project in partnership with Roe Valley Arts and Cultural Centre or Flowerfield Arts Centre in Portstewart please contact esther.alleyne@causewaycoastandglens.gov.uk

 

Captions

This arpillera doll was among those created during the cross community project, and is now on display in the online Triax Arpillera Dolls Exhibition.