Womanifesto

WeMend

Womanifesto

Procreation/Postcreation, 2003

WeMend, 2023-
LB03 presentation of WeMend realized in collaboration with Department of Textile, Fashion, and Accessories Design MDSVAD BNU, Kaarvan Crafts Foundation, & Baazyaft 

Womanifesto began as a feminist art project based in Bangkok, Thailand, evolving from a biennial exhibition in 1997 into a workshop, artist publication, website, and residence program in six editions from 1997 through 2008, bringing together more than a hundred fifty artists from over forty-five countries.  Since 2018, Womanifesto has been featured in exhibitions at Cross Art Projects, Sydney (2019), Asia Art Archive, Hong Kong (2020), Cooper Gallery, Dundee (2021-22), documenta fifteen (2022), and Bangkok Art and Culture Center (2023).  The collective is currently led by Varsha Nair, Jamilah Preenun Nana, and Nitaya Ueareeworakul.

Womanifesto realized the artist publication Procreation/Postcreation in 2003, accompanied by a launch event with performances and video screenings.  It featured contributions from eighty-eight female and male contributors, who were solicited via email, at the time a still novel technology in the art world.  The theme was motivated by Womanifesto founder Ueareeworakul’s recent pregnancy.

Womanifesto’s WeMend is an ongoing participatory workshop, begun in 2023 and realized in a dozen places so far, that invites visitors and community groups in different locations to engage in sewing, embroidery, and patchwork.  In our fragmented times, WeMend explores the possibilities of convergence, offering time and space to slow down – to commune, converse, and connect. The iteration of WeMend for Lahore has been developed by faculty and students from the Textile, Fabric, and Accessories Design department at BNU-MDSVAD at the invitation of the Lahore Biennale Foundation, working with artisans from Kaarvan Crafts Foundation and Baazyaft. They have worked through the theme of “Fabric as Social Identity – کون؟ کہاں؟ کیوں؟,” looking at how fabric represents societal identity through three themes: Who, Where, and Why, each depicted by unique visual sub-themes.  Textiles reflect a region’s roots, history, and cultural narratives, with the YMCA in Lahore  symbolizing the city’s identity as a center for creativity and inclusivity. It connects personal and political stories, embracing individuals as Pakistanis beyond race or religion.  WeMend for LB03 has been developed under the lead of Kiran Khan and co-lead Anam Khurram, with Risham Syed and Rohma Khan as advisors.