Artistic Expression and Empathy: UEA’s Refugee Week Art Displays Illuminate Stories of Sanctuary Seekers

(L_R) Madi Dutton, UEA Sanctuary Liaison Officer (left) during the Families Beyond Boundaries screen-printing workshop. Screen printing workshop. The poster created by UEA graduate, Bahara . The poster created by UEA student, Sayed.

(IN BRIEF) The University of East Anglia (UEA) is hosting Refugee Week from March 1st to 8th, featuring two collaborative art exhibitions: “Finding Home in Education” and “Families Beyond Boundaries.” The first exhibition showcases posters created by sanctuary seekers exploring the theme of home in education, while the second exhibition portrays Ukrainian families separated by conflict, using screen-printed t-shirts to symbolize unity. These events are part of UEA’s University of Sanctuary initiative, highlighting the resilience of sanctuary seekers and fostering inclusivity within the community.

(PRESS RELEASE) NORWICH, 29-Feb-2024 — /EuropaWire/ — University of East Anglia (UEA), a public research university based in Norwich, England, proudly presents Refugee Week, running from March 1st to 8th, featuring a vibrant lineup of events designed to engage and inspire the community. At the heart of the week are two collaborative art exhibitions, “Finding Home in Education” and “Families Beyond Boundaries,” shedding light on the experiences of sanctuary seekers and the universal yearning for connection.

Finding Home in Education

Finding Home in Education is a collaborative art exhibition which showcases 14 unique posters designed and produced by sanctuary seekers whose experience of forced displacement manifests in works that speak of hope lost and hope found.

Image: (L-R) The poster created by UEA graduate, Bahara. The poster created by UEA student, Reze. The poster created by UEA student, Sayed. 

Inspired by the national Refugee Week theme of ‘Our Home’, the artworks in Finding Home in Education were created as part of a two-day arts workshop in early February at King’s College London, led by renowned artists Majid Adin and Dana Oleresk.

The workshop brought together 17 students and academics from nine UK universities with backgrounds of forced displacement to explore concepts around home in higher education when seeking sanctuary, and the challenges of access to, alongside the life-changing impacts of, higher education.

Sayed is currently studying MA Engineering at UEA having joined as a sanctuary scholar under the University of Sanctuary initiative. Taking part in the workshop had a powerful effect on Sayed, who said:

“The workshop was a profound reminder of how education serves as a beacon of hope for refugees and asylum seekers. Being part of this gathering, under the University of Sanctuary’s banner, reinforced my belief in the transformative power of education. It’s not just about academic achievements; it’s about building a supportive community that recognises the unique challenges and potential of displaced individuals.

“This experience has deepened my commitment to advocating for educational opportunities for asylum seekers and refugees, recognising it as a vital step towards inclusion and understanding in our society. I am grateful for the opportunity to have been part of such a meaningful event and to contribute to a cause that matters.”

The posters will be exhibited at UEA and across the UK partner universities, art institutions, community organisations and schools in March 2024 and will be accompanied by a short film produced during the workshop by Red 7 Films.

Finding Home in Education: 4 – 31 March, 9am-5pm, The Enterprise Centre Foyer, University of East Anglia

Families Beyond Boundaries

Families Beyond Boundaries is a mixed-media community art project that explores loss and the impact of being split from family and friends – whilst also exploring concepts of being united and standing together when apart.

Through the mediums of screen-printing and photography, Families Beyond Boundaries aims to represent Ukrainian families that have been divided by war and forced to live in different parts of the world. Each family member portrayed in the show will be visually united by the clothing they are wearing – a unique homemade screen-printed t-shirt. Whilst the backdrop of the photographs will depict two different parts of the world, the screen-printed t-shirts will unite the families and visually symbolise the connection that remains no matter how many miles lay between them.

Image: Madi Dutton, UEA Sanctuary Liaison Officer (left) during the Families Beyond Boundaries screen-printing workshop 

The creation of the works in this show began on Sunday 14 May 2023 (Mother’s Day in Ukraine), when 12 Ukrainian families who are currently based in the UK came together to undertake the first stage of the project, a group t-shirt screen-printing workshop. All of the participants have loved ones who remain in Ukraine, many of which haven’t been seen in person since the war started in spring 2022.

Image: The Sovenko family pictured in England (left) with a family member pictured in Ukraine (right)

During the session, participants were supported to create unique stencil designs which they then screen-printed onto t-shirts, with each attendee printing t-shirts for family members in both the UK and Ukraine. The t-shirts were then posted to the family members who remain in Ukraine. Each package also included a handwritten note on a postcard designed by Ukrainian artist, Olha Shamrai.

Image: The Salata family pictured in England (left) with their family member pictured in Ukraine (right)

Since that time, attendees and recipients have been photographing themselves in their screen-printed t-shirts. The connected images will be displayed alongside each other for the first time from 4 – 31 March in The Enterprise Centre Foyer, UEA.

Families Beyond Boundaries: 4 – 31 March, 9am-5pm, The Enterprise Centre Foyer, University of East Anglia

UEA Refugee Week – programme of events

Refugee Week is just one of the strands delivered by UEA’s University of Sanctuary (UoS) initiative, which is spearheaded by a university-wide steering group of more than forty staff and students led by Sophie North, Lecturer in Health Sciences, and Madi Dutton, the Sanctuary Liaison Officer.

While the UK-wide Refugee Week programmes are generally held in June, UEA’s programme runs earlier in the year to ensure it can involve more people within the community, to better deliver a strong and inspiring series of events.

Speaking ahead of the launch, Sophie said:

“UEA Refugee Week is the culmination of months of hard work by colleagues, students and partners across Norwich and beyond. As a team, we have been bowled over by the exceptional people we have had the honour to work with, both sanctuary seekers and those supporting the initiative.

“We are especially excited this year to welcome partners from across the UK to work collaboratively on our biggest undertaking yet, an exhibition that will run simultaneously across venues the length and breadth of the country. At the heart of the exhibitions, and across the whole of the programme, we have stayed true to people’s lived experiences and seek to reflect the voices, histories and aspirations of sanctuary seekers wherever they have come from.”

To view the full programme of events, please head to the University of Sanctuary website and follow them on Facebook.

SOURCE: University of East Anglia