Narrative Threads

£22.99

Narrative Threads

Textile artworks Toys: making and decorating

Author: Joanna Barakat

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Language: English

Published by: Saqi Books

Published on: 28th August 2025

Format: LCP-protected ePub

ISBN: 9781849250825


Introduction

For centuries, Palestinian women wrote the stories of their lives and land with a needle and thread. Their embroidery, or tatreez, inspired hundreds of artists who reinterpreted and transformed it into a symbol of Palestinian identity, steadfastness and resistance.

About the Book

Narrative Threads celebrates the immense beauty and significance of Palestinian embroidery in contemporary art. Joanna Barakat documents and features more than 200 works by twenty-four established and emerging artists, who incorporate the motifs and symbolism of tatreez across diverse media—from painting, sculpture and textile to film, photography and street art.

Artists and Themes

While some artists preserve traditional forms, others transform tatreez to explore themes of displacement, resilience and belonging. Together, their works offer a dynamic reflection on Palestinian heritage and identity.

Essays and Insights

With insightful essays by leading art historians Dr Tina Sherwell, Wafa Ghnaim and Rachel Dedman, Narrative Threads reveals the power of Palestinian embroidery as a visual language that recounts the past, connects us to the present and envisions a different, hopeful future.

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