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This fragment is part of the "CulturalxCollabs - Weaving the Future" carpet.
Through the fragment we trace the journey of the fragment owners and their collabs as they explore, experiment and creatively advance socially relevant themes. Here is the fragment as we are sending it on this three and a half-year journey.
Follow this story to observe the transformations the fragment undergoes over the course of these years...
The journey begins...
...with Teyana Neufeld
My fragment, pictured in the weaving studio where I work as a teacher/designer and studio manager. We are Nayamba Trade Centre in Chisamba, Zambia and we spin, dye and weave our own threads into blankets, table runners, and rugs. My fragment sat in the studio with us, absorbing the click-clack of the looms, the ladies' laughter and song, the cries of their children, and the smell of lunch cooking.
I work in a studio with nine Zambian women. We weave, and sew, and spin, and dye, and design: accompanied always with the sounds of togetherness. The space is busy, and on top of the almost unbroken click-clack of looms, there is the sound of constant chatter, conversation, argument, hilarity, and song. We speak at least 4 different languages between the lot of us, but often revert to Nyanja, or English (if they are being kind to me). There is a constant stream of children coming and going. Problems are worked through collectively, and though we often work towards deadlines, it also feels like we have an abundance of time.
The very essence of my job is one of cultural collaboration. I am here to teach the art of weaving and natural dyeing. I teach project planning, trouble-shooting techniques, and design, but most importantly I teach the weavers how to teach so that they can teach others when I’ve moved on. But I am also a student. The weavers teach me the importance of a greeting. They teach me the ease with which humour comes, even when it’s 35 degrees and muggy and we are sweating from our knees. They teach me how to be generous…with my time, with my attention, with my knowledge, with my kindness.
The weavers cook nshima every day for lunch, and we all bring ndiyo – leftovers from whatever we had for dinner the night before. From the first day I was invited to join my co-workers for lunch, I have imagined this scene from a bird’s eye view: sometimes as many as 8 women gathered around a circle of pots and tupperwares unceremoniously on the ground, dipping our freshly-washed hands into the steaming hot nshima and scooping up some ndiyo. Today I took that mental image and turned to the woven structure of overshot to find out how I could literally weave this daily ritual into cloth. After fussing around with shafts and treadles, I’m pleased with the image I came up with: both as an independent design element, and as a repeat design. I’ll be waiting for the next time a loom is free so that I can weave up a sample!
Front and Back
About the Project
The Museum for Islamic Art's project, #CulturalxCollabs - Weaving the future, celebrates the transformative power of cultural exchange and the shared threads that unite us all. All the things we love, have loved and will ever love come from cultural exchange, migration and diversity, or as we like to call it #CulturalxCollabs.
100 carpet fragments, cut from a replica of the iconic dragon carpet, will travel the world (delivered by DHL). The fragments will ignite #CulturalxCollabs with co-creators, inspiring human ingenuity, fostering community and ultimately demonstrating how cultural exchange enriches all our lives.
Follow #CulturalxCollabs on Instagram as the project unfolds...
...or learn more here
Weaving the Future
Join us on a journey with 100 carpet fragments as they travel around the world for three and a half years, finding temporary homes while bridging cultural boundaries, fostering worldwide community united by the power of human stories.
Fragment Journeys
100 carpet fragments part of the "CulturalxCollabs - Weaving the Future" project. Follow their journeys through the ever changing owners' over three and a half years.
Where is the Dragon?
The star of the "CulturalxCollabs - Weaving the Future" project is a so-called Caucasian dragon carpet from the 17th century. A dragon carpet - all well and good - but: where is the dragon?
