| Description: | The nine women who created this cross-cultural quilt in Nürnberg, Germany, came from six different countries in order to apply for asylum for themselves and their small families. Their home in Germany was a small guest house. Every family had a room in which they managed to find, with unbelievable innovation, a corner to sleep, one to live in, another to cook, and the last to wash.
The women met and, over coffee and cakes, began to talk about their work, homesickness, and the longing to be with family. As they talked, they sewed pictures of their home countries: Armenia, China, Ossetia, Mongolia, Romania, and Vietnam.
The first square represents the Immigration Office, the place where each of these women's fate was decided. It was created by Ragnhild von Studnitz, the adviser of the sewing group and curator to this exhibition. The second square was created by Zariza, a kindergarten teacher from Ossieta in the Caucasus. It shows the traditional serving of the father-in-law by the daughter-in-law. She may not address him directly or dress in a modern fashion. The third square, also by Zariza, shows the walls of Germany as a symbol of how difficult it is for those seeking refuge. There are walls around the houses and the offices and the people.
The fourth square shows Anahit's village square in Charezawan, Armenia's city with more than a thousand churches. The fifth square shows an Armenian living room, where there are only old people because all the young men are away fighting. The sixth square, also Anahits, shows the guesthouse, her transient home.
The seventh, eighth and ninth squares are by Rong-Rong and her mother Mei Zhu from China. The seventh square is Rong-Rong's impression of Germany, which has only "hills and fir trees". The cranes and tree in the eighth one stand for fortune, health, and long life. The ninth one represents Rong-Rong's home in China.
The tenth square was created by Natalia, a mechanic from Romania, who spent most of her time running after her young son. She shows a shepherd following his herd. The eleventh square is by Nansalma, a chemist from Ulan Bator in Mongolia. It shows the Panda bear of which hardly any are left there. Ain added her living memory of her Vietnamese village in the twelfth square.
The thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth squares are from Mongolia. The first of these is a hut in a vast countryside. The next one represents a typical Mongolian dance. The last one shows that visitors have come. The horses, the usual way of travelling from place to place in Mongolia, are tied to the hitching post.
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