Domestic Dusters: Embroidering Experiences of Domesticity

Host: Vanessa Marr, artist and academic, Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and Principal Lecturer and Course Leader at the University of Brighton

Join artist and academic Vanessa Marr, founder of the internationally renowned Domestic Dusters collaborative arts project, for an engaging and practical workshop and talk. Vanessa leads a series of practical activities with an invitation to begin embroidering a duster, whilst sharing her inspiration for the project and the story behind some of its many contributions from across the globe.

Domestic Dusters, established in 2015, explores contemporary perspectives on the everyday lives of women. Through an open call, participants are invited to embroider their domestic thoughts, feelings, complaints, and celebrations as words or images onto a yellow duster. Each duster is unique and hand-stitched, transforming it from cleaning cloth to craftivist act. The ever-growing collection includes hundreds of dusters that have been exhibited and presented widely in community, creative and academic contexts across the UK including The Senedd, The Knitting & Stitching Show, mainland Europe and the USA.

For more information about International Women’s Day, visit internationalwomensday.com

Preparation

Collect together the materials required.

Video time

60 minutes