In celebration of International Women’s Day 2013 we teamed up with Katie Ruddy, Coordinator of the Amani Project, to deliver an art workshop at the African Community Centre in Swansea.
The theme of the workshop was “empowering women” so our Arts Outreach Coordinator Erin Rickard linked this into the recent series of Swansea Icons.
The workshop started by giving a brief talk about some of the important and inspiring women of Swansea, including Bonnie Tyler, Adelina Patti, Jessie and Margaret Ace (The Women of Mumbles Head). We then researched Swansea’s history together, finding out about their new home and Welsh heritage. It was fascinating to hear about the heritage of their countries, for example Cockling is also a job that women and children do on the coast of Nigeria.
Once the group had chosen which women they found most interesting they began painting a large banner. Inspiration for this came from the banners women carried during the miners’ strikes in the 1980s. Throughout this process everyone shared stories and their personal heritage, learning about Swansea and how important women are within history, the present day and the future.
The finished banner will be on public display from 1st May – 10th June in the Civic Centre Swansea. If you would like to join in making your own mural or banner then please visit the Swansea Museum on Wednesday 4th and 10th April, Erin will be there with Play Right running art workshops, games, and story telling for all ages and best of all it’s Free!
