Empowerment Through Design

The Empowerment Though Design project had an exhibition and an embroidery workshop at the main library in Frederiksberg, Denmark last month - I went to the workshop where we were told the story behind the project, shown pictures and saw examples of local needle and yarn work from Tunesia and Morocco.

The Royal Danish Academy School of Design has since 2008 been involved in the Empowerment Through Design in both Morocco and Tunesia. Studens and teachers have travelled to the two countries to help educate local women on how to make a design from beginning to end.

Needless to say the local women are extremely gifted with traditional needle and yarn work that makes the rest of us drool with envy - skills that have been handed over through generations. But often the finishing touch has been missing when selling their crafts at local markets - despite excellent needle work, would you buy the purse if the purse itself was really badly sewn together? I am guessing "No!".

They teach the locals about design - how to create a beautiful end-product that people/tourists actually want to buy as their craft is given the little extra touch to show it's beauty. A unique product created and sold locally and not some souvenir imported from somewhere else.

Textile Book and Blog Day

I went to this even the weekend before last - and I participated in a workshop.

Wont go into details about the workshop as it was a failure in my view - turned out that the main description(theme) about this 2½ hour workshop was incorrect, and the lady hosting the workshop spent 45 minutes about her creations, her artistic name etc so none of us got a finished thing to show - some of us had barely started making a project as heads could not quite adjust to the new theme of the work shop.

There was even a small fair with sellers, but I think they were too alike and if they were just addressing a specific crowd and not being a broad event like they had said it would be on their flyer.

Normally I consider myself open minded - but it is hard to stay positive when you do not get what you initially thought you paid for. I could have made a fuss about it, as my profession is purchasing so I could have thrown rules and regulations in their face - but it was my weekend, time away from work and with the hint of my crafty interests.

They want it to be a yearly event - starting last year - but will the event survive at all? I for one can not recommend crafty friends to pay money on the entrance fee as inspiration is scarce.