workshops
2023 Trace the Stitch Workshops
Since moving to London and being closer to the war between the Ukraine and Russia, my American Ukrainian heritage has loomed increasingly larger. My father’s parents emigrated to America from Lviv, Ukraine in 1917 and my father grew up in Chicago. While my father’s first language was Ukrainian, my mother was of English and Irish descent. She learned everything she knew about Ukrainian traditions such as making borcht and psyanky (Ukrainian Easter eggs) from her mother-in-law. and passed them on to her eight children.
In the Fall of 2022 Ukrainian artist Kristina Gaidamaka and I met via Zoom to discuss an artistic collaboration. As our conversations evolved we realized how important textiles were to both of our practices and together we created an art education project Art UKR+UK. In September 2023 we began Art UKR+UK and offered our first Trace the Stitch Workshop to enhance cultural awareness of Ukraine’s unique history of embroidery. We invited the public to come to the West London Art Factory and to help create a community rushnyk, a ritual cloth that symbols welcome, on three meters of vintage Ukrainian cloth. Trace the Stitch workshop participants left behind a beautiful beginning to a symbolic rushnyk that we plan to continue to add to in future events.
For inquires on Workshops please contact me through Let's Connect.
