Latest news with #culturalexpression
Independent Singapore
18 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Independent Singapore
A dress that's 14 years in the making: 380 artists, 51 countries, countless stories
Photo: Wikipiedia CC / Red_Dress_(embroidery_project) There are very few things that connect civilisations like art. Whether it's through musical compositions, images on canvas, timeless monuments, or stitched fabrics, creative expression offers us the means to share who we are, our places of origin, and what's important to us. However, not often does one piece of imaginative creation succeed in representing the voices, values, and thoughts of people from all over the world. According to a recent article from Upworthy , the Red Dress project is one such amazing creation, where exquisiteness, storytelling, and connection are sewn together in every fibre of one elegant clothing. A royal garment from everywhere Ostensibly, the Red Dress looks like something appropriate for royals. But this is no regular stately dress. With its profound burgundy satin, elaborate needlework, and elegant form, it's difficult to assign it to any culture or tradition. Rather, it draws from all over Europe, Africa, Asia, the Americas, and beyond—its design a seamless and synchronised blend of international influences. See also Employee asks, "How does one become a manager quickly?" Such universality was not achieved by chance. Consisting of 84 sheets of silk dupion brought from across the globe over 14 years, the Red Dress was worked on by as many as 380 individuals from across 51 nations. As they worked, personal tales and distinct idiosyncrasies were poured into the dress. What came out was a splendid apparel that goes beyond borders and expresses a language of grit, perseverance, memories, traditions, and beauty. Stitching stories: The women behind the art With each stitch of the Red Dress is a woman with a compelling story. Almost one-third of the embroiderers were skilled craftspeople, commissioned and paid for their work, and now have a percentage of the display fees. The others were unpaid assistants who participated in community cross-stitch events, who came from different walks of life. An astounding 97% of the contributors were women, and most of them were using the endeavour as a chance to express personal and cultural stories, some even discovering a path to economic solidity through their expertise. Some sewed traditional designs that have been passed down for generations. Others knitted in intimate self-examination—recollections, symbols, or sentiments—that spoke to their inimitable journeys. One panel was embellished by two women in Kosovo, who shared firm musings about their wartime experiences. These intensely personal insights and inputs shifted the dress into more than just a piece of clothing; it became a universal bedding of reflexive accounts and embodied experiences. From sketch to global symbol The Red Dress was initiated as an unpretentious drawing by British textile artist Kirstie Macleod in 2009, illustrated on the back of a table linen. Then it swiftly transformed into something more glorious — a collective platform to explore individuality and breed connection among women from diverse cultural and geographic backgrounds. Finalised and completed in 2023, the dress comprises millions of stitches, a visual and emotive record of collective human experiences. Today, it is being toured around museums and galleries all over the world, frequently exhibited by women of different backgrounds and ages, each one exemplifying a piece of the women's shared narrative. See also Cameron Diaz and Benji Madden welcome baby daughter
The National
16-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The National
Palestinian poster exhibition in London communicates 'urgency' of the moment
Malu Halasa emphasises how the artworks deliver direct, meaningful messages, making them a vital form of cultural expression for Palestine today
Yahoo
08-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Reclaiming the story of Bradford's 1904 Somali village
In summer 1904, millions of people descended on Bradford for arguably the biggest festival it has ever seen. Along with typical fairground fun and examples of the city's industrial might, Bradford Great Exhibition's biggest draw was also its most bizarre - a living and breathing Somali village. More than 120 years on, a team of historians are piecing together the stories of those who lived within the walled compound and helping the UK Somali community reclaim the narrative. Reportedly attracting about 350,000 paid visitors in total, the exhibit transplanted about 100 Somali men, women and children from the Horn of Africa and put them on public display in Lister Park for six months. "It has resonance as a story of colonised and racialised people who still gazed back and resisted in their own way and had fascinating lives," says Prof Fozia Bora, from the University of Leeds. "We are really keen to share the story with Bradfordians and the country at large." "Even though the Somali community has existed in different parts of the UK for over 150 years, nobody knew anything about the Somali village in Bradford," says Zainab Nur, chair of the recently founded Somali Village charity. "That's why it needs to be told and shared." Together with an online history project, Ms Nur is attempting to reframe the event - "not as a footnote of imperial display, but as a significant episode in the longer history of Somali migration, cultural expression and resistance". Ms Nur, who was born to Somali parents and whose forefathers came to the UK during the industrial revolution, says learning about the exhibit raised several key questions. "I was like, what is this? Are they being exhibited? Were they forced? Was it similar to human zoos?" The collaborative project and associated charity were officially launched at a recent event at Cartwright Hall, near where the village was located. The project also aims to trace people who may be descendants of the original village residents, as little is known about what happened to them after the exhibition packed up and left. Records reveal the group lived in self-built huts and gave daily demonstrations including dancing, spear throwing and archery. Villagers also displayed their weaving and blacksmithing skills, selling their wares to visitors. One official report at the time said "they maintained their attractive character throughout, and under the trying conditions of the Yorkshire climate behaved in a most creditable manner". Prof Bora, an associate professor of Islamic history, says the team is determined to "reverse the gaze of looking at the other as exotic, strange, weird, even inferior". "That is the range of lenses through which the Somalis would have been viewed, as well as fascination and admiration," she says. "The project tries to really look at the experience from the Somali point of view." Community historian Yahya Birt says the episode challenges some misconceptions about Bradford's multicultural identity. Discussing his own involvement, he says: "It began with a simple question - who were Bradford's first Muslims? "We found out that this community wasn't from South Asia but actually from the Horn of Africa." The team acknowledges it is a delicate story to tell, especially through a 21st Century lens and contemporary discourse around migration and decolonisation. But they believe the retelling is vital and will have particular resonance during Bradford's UK City of Culture year. "There are many aspects of this story that are definitely uncomfortable," adds Mr Birt. "The best history happens when you're made to feel uncomfortable because it makes you question your own assumptions." Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North. City names first black, hijab-wearing Lord Mayor 'Nothing is impossible' says graduate refugee A Somali Village in Colonial Bradford
BBC News
08-06-2025
- Entertainment
- BBC News
Reclaiming the story of Bradford's 1904 Somali village exhibition
In summer 1904, millions of people descended on Bradford for arguably the biggest festival it has ever with typical fairground fun and examples of the city's industrial might, Bradford Great Exhibition's biggest draw was also its most bizarre - a living and breathing Somali village. More than 120 years on, a team of historians are piecing together the stories of those who lived within the walled compound and helping the UK Somali community reclaim the attracting about 350,000 paid visitors in total, the exhibit transplanted about 100 Somali men, women and children from the Horn of Africa and put them on public display in Lister Park for six months. "It has resonance as a story of colonised and racialised people who still gazed back and resisted in their own way and had fascinating lives," says Prof Fozia Bora, from the University of Leeds. "We are really keen to share the story with Bradfordians and the country at large." "Even though the Somali community has existed in different parts of the UK for over 150 years, nobody knew anything about the Somali village in Bradford," says Zainab Nur, chair of the recently founded Somali Village charity."That's why it needs to be told and shared."Together with an online history project, Ms Nur is attempting to reframe the event - "not as a footnote of imperial display, but as a significant episode in the longer history of Somali migration, cultural expression and resistance".Ms Nur, who was born to Somali parents and whose forefathers came to the UK during the industrial revolution, says learning about the exhibit raised several key questions."I was like, what is this? Are they being exhibited? Were they forced? Was it similar to human zoos?"The collaborative project and associated charity were officially launched at a recent event at Cartwright Hall, near where the village was located. The project also aims to trace people who may be descendants of the original village residents, as little is known about what happened to them after the exhibition packed up and reveal the group lived in self-built huts and gave daily demonstrations including dancing, spear throwing and archery. Villagers also displayed their weaving and blacksmithing skills, selling their wares to official report at the time said "they maintained their attractive character throughout, and under the trying conditions of the Yorkshire climate behaved in a most creditable manner".Prof Bora, an associate professor of Islamic history, says the team is determined to "reverse the gaze of looking at the other as exotic, strange, weird, even inferior"."That is the range of lenses through which the Somalis would have been viewed, as well as fascination and admiration," she says. "The project tries to really look at the experience from the Somali point of view." Community historian Yahya Birt says the episode challenges some misconceptions about Bradford's multicultural his own involvement, he says: "It began with a simple question - who were Bradford's first Muslims?"We found out that this community wasn't from South Asia but actually from the Horn of Africa."The team acknowledges it is a delicate story to tell, especially through a 21st Century lens and contemporary discourse around migration and they believe the retelling is vital and will have particular resonance during Bradford's UK City of Culture year."There are many aspects of this story that are definitely uncomfortable," adds Mr Birt. "The best history happens when you're made to feel uncomfortable because it makes you question your own assumptions." Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.
