MEMORIES OF ELSEWHERE

In a series of workshops spawning from August 2021 to September 2022, a team of musicians, artists and community art practitioners worked with a group of migrants and refugees to co-create a collection of artefacts that tell the story of displacement and migration of the Iranian community in Scotland. These weekly workshops have explored tapestry, music and ceramic techniques with a contemporary approach, inspired and led by the concerns around migration and refugee justice.

These objects respond to the Iranian heritage in contemporary Scottish society and explore the complex history between Iran and the UK. More importantly, these artefacts are permeated by notions of political upheaval, persecution and freedom of expression; since creative expression is currently subject to censorship in Iran and the critical role of the arts has been strongly limited by the government.

From 26th to  28th of February, the collection of objects made during the workshops will be shown in a small exhibition at the Pipe Factory, an art gallery in Glasgow. 

For the exhibition, the participants want to talk about their experience living between two countries, in a liminal space between the place they left and the country they live in. The resulting collection of objects, which includes ceramics, music pieces, instruments and tapestries, will be displayed to capture this notion of the middle passage, the experience of cultural hybridization, dislocation and geographical movement.

During the opening day, the participants will also present a musical performance, using the collection of instruments they made during the workshops and playing musical rhythms that take inspiration from Iranian traditional music.