Textile Artist, Illustrator Alrseg Khulood

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Taiteellinen työ / siihen pohjautuva työ | Yksivuotinen

My project aims to collect stories of women in Finland and Iraq that have suffered from domestic violence and express them through an expressive and colorful form of textile art. As an Iraqi woman, who experienced the rise of fundamentalist religion in my home country, and now living in Finland, I can see the great differences in independent status women may achieve in educational and professional life. Domestic violence is a big problem in Finland too. Building a connection between women in Iraq and Finland, I'll develop my ongoing body of artistic work that centers on women. Domestic violence is a difficult issue around the world. In Finland, about 20 women get killed by their spouses or ex-spouses a year. A study by the European Agency for Fundamental Rights of 2014 states that 53% of women in Finland have experienced emotional threat or violence by men, 30% have experienced physical or sexual violence by their current or ex-spouses. The study does not cover Iraq. I will study the broader picture such statistics show, and my artistic research will be mainly through personal relations and narrative accounts. There will also be stories about women's creativity and success, and about positive roles of women in the family, to show the opposite side, in both Iraq and Finland. In addition to my studies in Finnish museums and other places for displaying textile arts, such as popular art and craftsmanship for the general public, my research will include visiting Finnish artists in person, talking to them about their motives, topics and techniques. There is an impressive use of textile techniques in contemporary art in Finland which is lacking in Iraq, despite its rich history of traditional genres. I will compare and contrast the motivations and techniques and employ them in my new work for this project. I aim to discover the spirit of Finnish women textile artists and compare it with my artistic experience, techniques and sensibilities. I'm also making an exhibition.