As part of BIO 23, you can see an interesting exhibition that shows the results of creative learning and fruitful socializing of immigrant women from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia and Kosovo, living in Jesenice. Since 2010, Oloop has been researching and developing projects, campaigns and products that raise awareness of...
As part of BIO 23, you can see an interesting exhibition that shows the results of creative learning and fruitful socializing of immigrants from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, and Kosovo living in Jesenice.
Since 2010, Oloop has been researching and developing projects, campaigns and products that raise awareness of the importance of handwork and the impact it has on the well-being of individuals and communities. For their diverse and in-depth work, the creators of the Oloop group were ranked among the 50 most successful Slovenian women in 2011. The idea for the project Razkrite roke grew out of a desire to expand their activities and thus the concept of contemporary design by adding a socially engaged note to it. They wanted to share their knowledge with a group of women who are close to textile handwork, they wanted to learn from a common folk tradition and create something contemporary, something for today. They were definitely encouraged and financially supported in their realization by a call from the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia and the European Social Fund. Thus, they created Razkrite roke. The title alludes to the veiled faces of women who communicate with the world through their loving, skillful and hardworking hands. It is a creative-educational project aimed at socializing and increasing the employability of unemployed female immigrants from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia and Kosovo living in Jesenice and the surrounding area. The exhibition of the same name represents its conclusion and is intended to showcase the creative process and results of the project.
Whose hands are these?
They were brought to Slovenia by various life stories, coincidences, and conditions in their homeland. They have something in common – perseverance, patience, skill, precision, and a love of working with their hands. The older ones learned textile crafts, such as embroidery, knitting, and crocheting, from their female ancestors in their youth; the younger ones have almost completely lost touch with this type of work. They come from a cultural environment that is extremely rich in terms of textile cultural heritage and, in certain segments, similar to the Slovenian one. Most of them take care of large families. Some of them are retired, rarely employed, others are looking for work, and still others want to work from home. Some speak and understand Slovenian well, some do not. Therefore, the latter in particular saw the meetings as a new opportunity to learn and strengthen the Slovenian language. All of them are permeated by the need for handicrafts, for financial independence, for socializing outside the family circle, and for a connection with their own cultural roots.
What's next?
The result of the project is a collection of contemporary handmade textile products, which, in terms of aesthetics and content, is based on the textile cultural heritage of the vulnerable group and is enriched with Slovenian tradition. Both traditions are intertwined and transformed in a fresh and modern way in the spirit of the times, making them suitable for modern people. With the creative and educational project Open Hands, the creators want to help representatives of the vulnerable group to become more employable in the field of culture, to find additional income and to create a supportive group work environment. For several years now, interest in handicrafts and products with so-called added value has been increasing.
The project is led by the Institute for Contemporary Textile Art and Design OLOOP from Ljubljana in collaboration with the Philanthropic Charity Association UP from Jesenice. The exhibition was created in collaboration with the Slovenian Ethnographic Museum.
