Happy New Year. I hope the new year will bring many blessings to everyone.
The research center is still closed for the public except for previously scheduled appointments.
While the center was closed most of 2021, there were some activities to note. Kachaashii Nagashi, a cultural event reflecting on the history and culture of Teruya District (March). This was the last public event. Other activities were held on zoom such as SVA Talk (March), Ar(t)chive Webinar (April), A.I.R. Batung Talk (May) and , Ar(t)chive Webinar and SVA Talk and Graduate interview session with Okinawa International University Faculty of Cultural Studies, Department of Social and Cultural Studies, Third Year Peace Studies Seminar (September).
The center also published an article title, Stitching Pieces of Herstory tells the MiXtory, on an online journal in December 2021. It is part of "the Istanbul Design Biennial hosted a research programme, with the kind contributions of the US Embassy in Ankara, and in partnership with the Center for Arts, Design, and Social Research, to work collaboratively with a selection of four women designers, curators, researchers, thinkers (two from Turkey and two from the US) who are actively investigating geopolitics to build new tools and systems for social, economic and mostly environmental resilience."
The below is the abstract and the link to the article is here: https://tasarimbienali.iksv.org/en/journal/stitching-pieces-of-herstory-tells-the-mixtory
Stitching Pieces of Herstory tells the MiXtory (history, story, mystery) of women who worked as seamstresses in the Teruya district of Okinawa. Teruya was also known as the Black District, a bar district that coexisted with the market district and shopping and business district during the US military occupation period from 1945 to 1972. Teruya’s capital was built by these three economic zones, all prospering together as a community. Building both business and personal relationships with customers and neighbours who were mainly black soldiers as such the fragments of black figures are stitched into the grand narrative of Teruya. Non-linearly told, the MiXtory is like an Okinawan opera, presenting the everyday as life/art performance.
The center is looking forward to holding some public events in the new year, but it will all depend on the state of the pandemic. Meanwhile, we stay diligent and gentle.
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