Woven Narratives: Carrier of Memory and Resistance (A Hand-Made Collaborative Hazara Bag)
Collection:UAL Art Collection
Date: 2024
Artist: Mariame Ahmad (French)
Dimensions:
30 x 3 x 25cm when closed, 60 x 3 x 60cm when opened (with tassels, without strap)
Medium: Embroidery and screenprint on cotton
Object number: UAC 1151
DescriptionMariame studied MA Interior and Spatial Design at Camberwell College of Arts. She says: 'This is a collaborative bag between Zuhal Noori, an Afghan female refugee and myself, a second-generation Afghan immigrant.
Through various maps of Bamiyan and Afghanistan and a screen-printed image of the empty niche of the 55m Buddha destroyed by the Taliban, the embroidered bag weaves a place, the memory of a place, and storytelling into one single object. This multi-layered architectural piece creates opportunities for cross-cultural dialogues and remote engagement with Afghan cultural heritage, resisting Taliban efforts to suppress Afghan history and culture: it is both a counter-space to the Taliban’s oppression and a memorial for the Bamiyan Great Cliffs'.
Through various maps of Bamiyan and Afghanistan and a screen-printed image of the empty niche of the 55m Buddha destroyed by the Taliban, the embroidered bag weaves a place, the memory of a place, and storytelling into one single object. This multi-layered architectural piece creates opportunities for cross-cultural dialogues and remote engagement with Afghan cultural heritage, resisting Taliban efforts to suppress Afghan history and culture: it is both a counter-space to the Taliban’s oppression and a memorial for the Bamiyan Great Cliffs'.