Event Details
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The day we will never forget (Courtesy Ulster Museum) |
| Symposium: | Stitching Solidarity: Activism in Textile Art Symposium |
| Description: | Dates and Venues
March 1: Derry-Londonderry
March 1: Belfast programme
March 2: Visit to the Threads of Empowerment Exhibition & Special Collections, Queen's University Library, Belfast
March 3: Ulster University, Belfast (Paper Presentations and Seminars)
March 4: Community Practice Workshops: Ulster University, Linen Hall Library, Queen's University, Cathedral Quarter and others
Important Links:
- Stitching Solidarity Programme - link
- Stitching Solidarity Abstracts - link
- Stitching Solidarity Information - link
In a world that often denies the right to resist, we invite scholars, artists, textile-makers and activists to explore the multifaceted ways textiles can serve as a powerful medium for expressing, documenting, and archiving narratives of resistance.
This symposium aims to transcend traditional notions of protest and vocal activism, highlighting the quieter, more subtle forms of resistance that emerge through textile-making practices. We are particularly interested in examining how the imagery of a single thread or the accumulation of small, meaningful actions can weave together into a bold tapestry of dissent.
Background to the Symposium:
Conflict Textiles houses a large collection of international textiles, exhibitions, and associated events focusing on conflict and human rights abuses. It is an Associated Site of CAIN at Ulster University. The collection primarily comprises arpilleras, quilts, and wall hangings, emphasising the struggle for the disappeared and other human rights violations. Exhibitions featuring these textiles have been hosted globally in museums, universities, art galleries, embassies, and community spaces.
Currently, Conflict Textiles is holding a major exhibition entitled “Threads of Empowerment: Conflict Textiles' International Journey” at Ulster Museum (June 21, 2024 – April 27, 2025). The Symposium is part of the programme and will also build on previous events, notably:
- 2014: Textile Accounts of Conflicts: Digitally Archiving Stories for Peacebuilding. Hosted by INCORE, Ulster University [more].
- 2014: Conversations about Textile Narratives of Conflict, Testimony, and Resistance: Commissioned by the Childhood, Transition and Social Justice Initiative at Queen's University and INCORE, Ulster University [more].
- 2017: Textile Language of Conflicts exhibition and colloquium. Hosted by INCORE, Ulster University and CAIN [more].
The symposium is organised by staff from Ulster University, Belfast School of Art, Queen's University Belfast, Manchester University, University of Galway, University College Cork, the International Association of Women's Museums, and the Conflict Textiles Trust.
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| Commissioned by: | Brandon Hamber & Roberta Bacic |
| Date(s): | 1st March 2025 - 4th March 2025 |
| Venue: | Ulster University, Ulster Museum and Others
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| Curator: | n/a |
| Facilitator: | Brandon Hamber & Conflict Textiles |
| Outcome: | The Symposium proved to be a very inspirational and informative 4 days. 75 people from different cultures registered and participated in the various elements across a range of venues – the academic symposium and the workshops. Participants attended performances, new contacts were made and it is expected that some follow on collaborations will emerge. We were pleased to see both new and old colleagues and students, and the participation of the general public.
Photographic records:
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| Documents: |
• Activism in Textile Art Symposium Invite - view
• Call for Symposium Contributions - view
• Stitching Solidarity FULL Programme - view
• Saturday 1st Derry/Londonderry Programme - view
• Saturday 1st Belfast Programme - view
• Sunday 2nd Programme - view
• Stitching Solidarity Abstracts - view
• Stitching Solidarity Information - view
• Stitching Solidarity - Day 1 Record - view
• Stitching Solidarity - Day 2 Record - view
• Stitching Solidarity - Day 3 Record - view
• Stitching Solidarity - Day 4 Record - view
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