Umoja = Unity
Local government is in the unique position to be able to work with communities to realise social, economic and cultural outcomes. The task, when working with new and emerging communities is to identify needs and to develop strategies that best address them. For those of us working in the field of arts and culture this presents a very exciting opportunity and a great challenge.
The Umoja Project, was a series of craft workshops with women from the Sudan and Australian textile artist, Sara Thorn. The aim was to develop new objects in craft which transformed the application of traditional skills. Umoja, a Swahili word meaning unity was chosen by the Sudanese women as it symbolised their hopes and desires for the project and for their new lives in Australia.
There are a number of assumptions that recent arrivals have made about their new home. One is that they lack the skills required to find meaningful work, another is that they should leave their cultural practices behind and adopt Australian ways. The challenge for Umoja was to disprove these assumptions by developing existing skills and finding new ways of expressing meaning. The works developed transform the symbolism from traditional craft practices into the Australian context, giving voice to the participants and a gift to us.
The Umoja Project was based in the City of Maribyrnong and received funding from Arts Victoria.