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Weavings of War Closing to Highlight Hartford’s Bosnian Community
January 8, 2007 - Hartford, CT
Lynne Williamson at 860-278-2044 ext. 251 or lynne.williamson@icrweb.org
Gannon Long at 860-278-2044 ext. 275 or gannon.long@icrweb.org
The Institute for Community Research (ICR) is sponsoring a celebration of Bosnian culture on Saturday, January 13, 2007 from 4 to 6 pm. Hosted by ICR’s Connecticut Cultural Heritage Arts Program (CHAP), the event will feature members of Hartford’s Bosnian community who will sell crafts such as rugs, crochet and lacework as well as demonstrating weaving on their looms. Pastries and other traditional foods will also be served. The event will take place at ICR, 2 Hartford Square West (146 Wyllys St.), Suite 100 in Hartford. The event is free; advance registration is required by calling 860-278-2044 x251.
This Saturday’s event will be the last opportunity to view the powerful exhibit Weavings of War: Fabrics of Memory at its only showing in Southern New England. The exhibit showcases 60 textiles made by artisans from Laos, Vietnam, Peru, Chile, Afghanistan, South Africa, and Palestine. While the exhibit deals with war and trauma, its central theme demonstrates that art, narrative, and tradition can have a healing effect on those who have suffered through strife. “Members of Hartford’s surprisingly large Bosnian community have wonderful traditional skills, particularly in needlework and weaving, and want to present those to the larger public,” says Lynne Williamson, who directs CHAP and who brought the exhibit to ICR. “War affects whole generations of people even after the fighting stops, and many refugees in Connecticut are still confronting physical and psychological trauma. Sharing their culture, traditions and stories with the public in the context of this exhibit is one opportunity for them to make an effort to heal.” Among refugees from the recent genocide and civil war in Bosnia now living in Hartford are 700 widows whose husbands and sons were killed during that conflict.
Weavings of War: Fabrics of Memory will be on display at ICR until January 13, 2007. Gallery hours are Monday through Friday, 10 am to 5 pm; by appointment; and during special events. For more information about the exhibit and related events, please visit
www.incommunityresearch.org/weavingsofwar.htm or contact Lynne Williamson at 860-278-2044 x251 or lynne.Williamson@icrweb.org.
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The Institute for Community Research is an independent research institute that conducts applied research and supports community enhancement programs on issues of health, education and cultural heritage. Its Connecticut Cultural Heritage Arts Program encourages and promotes traditional artists and their communities through an active process of documentation, technical assistance, and public presentations to bring their work and the history of their communities to new audiences.
The Connecticut showing of Weavings of War: Fabrics of Memory is hosted by the Connecticut Cultural Heritage Arts Program (CHAP) of The Institute for Community Research. ICR's programming has been developed by CHAP in collaboration with an advisory committee of artists, community leaders and educators from local groups whose cultures are represented in the exhibit, and supported by the National Endowment for the Arts; the Connecticut Commission on Culture and Tourism; The Edward C. and Ann T. Roberts Foundation; the Knox Foundation; the Connecticut Humanities Council; the Hartford Foundation for Public Giving; the Ensworth Charitable Foundation, Bank of America, Trustee; and the Greater Hartford Arts Council, through its United Arts and United Way campaigns.
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