We’re excited to announce The Tatreez Forest: Stitching Palestinian Heritage, a project by the Arab British Centre and Tatreez Collective.
Through workshops in five museums across England, along with an open call so anyone anywhere can participate, our goal is to create several large-scale Cypress trees – a powerful symbol of hope and resilience in Palestinian culture – each made up of 100 individually stitched Tatreez panels. Your contribution will be vital to this collective artwork. By participating, you’ll add your unique voice to a tapestry of embroidered Cypress trees, each one representing the strength and unity of our community. Together, we will create a stunning visual representation of solidarity and cultural heritage.
This project is supported by the Barakat Trust’s Hands on Islamic Art Grant, awarding funds from the National Heritage Lottery Fund. Design by Nomad Solitude.
Open Call for Contributions
Download now!
Anyone can participate in our Tatreez Forest open call! All you need to do is:
- Download our Stitching Guide where you’ll find all the instructions you need to participate. We tell you what materials to get, how to Tatreez and what patterns you can use. We’ve even included some examples of historic Tatreez you can find in museums in the UK as inspiration.
- Stitch your panel! Whether you prefer to stitch solo, or with your community in a stitching circle, now’s your time to slow down, get creative and immerse yourself in this beautiful Palestinian tradition.
- Send us your panel so we can build our Tatreez forest and create our collaborative artwork. Send your completed artwork to the Arab British Centre by Friday 28 February. Check our Stitching Guide for all the details you need.
Register to receive your Stitching Guide now!
Museum Workshops
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To help us grow our collective artwork, we’re heading to five museums across England to run practical workshops exploring the history and process of Tatreez.
In our workshops you will:
- Explore and handle historic Tatreez textiles and other objects from Palestine from your local museums’ collection
- Learn about the origins of Tatreez and its cultural significance in Palestine
- Start stitching your own Tatreez Forest panel with expert guidance from the Tatreez Collective
Upcoming workshops:
13 March | 1-4pm | The Whitworth, Manchester
Why Cypress Trees?
Cypress trees have a symbiotic relationship with southern Palestine, with the shade they provide being vital in protecting women working outside. With distinct variations from Al Khalil, Yaffa, Ramallah, Gaza, & Bir Al Saba – look to many Tatreez designs and you’ll be sure to find a Cypress tree within.
Cypress trees are a powerful symbol of hope and resilience in Palestinian culture
We’re going to create three (at least!) cypress trees out of your contributions to this community artwork, specifically following the patterns of the Gaza, Hebron and Ramallah trees.