Eid Textile Tales: exploring art, faith and community over lockdown

We were delighted to host the launch of a film done with members of our WINGS group in collaboration with Queen Mary University of London and Stay at Home Stories, “Eid Textile Tales.”  

Originally conceived in 2020, the project, led by artist Theresa Hare Duke and facilitator Nish Mauree explored the different ways artistry and weaving could help Muslim women explore themes of faith, family and community during Eid and Ramadan. Members from our WINGS group for mothers and children were invited to take part.  

However, as the project was beginning so too was the COVID-19 pandemic. This forced Teresa and the participants to shift to a remote format for the project, with supplies and art packs being posted to everyone taking part so they could continue the work independently.  

The result was a beautiful patchwork tapestry of more than 40 art pieces from different families – an amazing testament to the power of community during an incredibly challenging time. With so many interesting conversations and themes explored over the many months the project took place, some participants were then invited to take part in a film with Stay at Home Stories team talking about not just the experience of creating the piece, but what it was like to live as Muslim migrants in the UK during lockdown. 

Many themes emerged including how nuanced Muslim practice is; how the home, became even more important as a place of worship during the closure of mosques; how rituals and traditions were observed in shared housing; how much they all missed sharing food with friends and family; how isolated some participants felt.

Following the screening of the film, Teresa was joined on stage by project participants Kemi, Mousumi and Sammi as well as representatives from QMUL and Stay at Home Stories to talk about its impact. They discussed the challenges of adapting the project to Covid-19 and living through lockdown, and how the themes connecting the quilt and the film showcased the experiences of undocumented migrants and refugees in the UK.

The event was closed out by more contributions from WINGS member Shakirat and a final set of songs from GIANTS group member Carlton. 

Thank you to Teresa Hare Duke, Nishta Mauree, QMUL and Stay at Home stories and all the women who took part for developing and working on this project!