Unity Braid
Unity Braid, 2019, Community Art Project. Media; gathered textiles.
The Unity Braid, 2019, is an installation that was created for a group show with the Frost shield Kerfuffle Artist Collective in which I am a member. The theme of the show was the Winnipeg General Strike of 1919 on its’ 100th anniversary.
For the show I wanted to create an art piece to honour and reflect the strength and solidarity of the courageous and hard working the women who were part of the strike. I also wanted the work to represent the continued bond between women helping women in the Manitoban communities we live in today. Thus the Unity Braid was conceived and is a symbol of strength in unity.
The braid was not only made from pieces of material collected from women in our communities but from some of the women themselves that helped to sort, cut and braid the donations. Textile donations for this project were overwhelming, and included not only scraps of material but old and precious items such as; scarves, material collected from women’s travels, left over sewing projects made for their children, uniforms, clothing, table cloths, doilies, art projects, dishtowels and cleaning rags (some of which were the first owned by the woman), textile articles passed down from mothers, grandmothers and relatives. From glitter and exotic, to work worn rags, the textiles were cut into strips and braided together to form one long braid.
The braid became a symbol of the gifts given to us through sacrifices and struggles of many women that have gone before us and reminder that we are never truly alone. I want to thank all the people who helped make this community project. It is my hope that this art piece serves to continue to symbolize the strength in unity of caring hearts, and projects this positive powerful energy out into our present day communities.
