The Point is delighted to welcome artist Alisa Ruzavina as part of the creative team for its project, The Fabrics of Freedom.
The Fabrics of Freedom is an exciting community-led project as part of Future Arts Centres’ national campaign, Our Freedom: Then and Now. The initiative invites people of Eastleigh Borough to reflect on what freedom means today, 80 years after the end of the Second World War.
As part of this project, we’re thrilled to be working with community-centred interdisciplinary artist Alisa Ruzavina. Alisa’s socially-engaged practice spans across textiles, public art, installation, sculpture, costume, immersive and celebratory experiences, community and participatory art. She is an experienced facilitator and educator, having worked with numerous groups of diverse ages, abilities and needs.
Alisa will work with The Point’s Creative Practitioner Dani Bond, fusing together their practices in drama and theatre and visual arts and textiles to create inspiring creative experiences for the local people taking part.
The sessions with local school Norwood Primary School and Fleming House Care Home, will directly inform the look and feel of the banners that Alisa will create to represent what freedom means to Eastleigh’s residents 80 years after VE Day.
The project will culminate in a celebration parade event at The Point on Saturday 15th November, where everyone is invited to enjoy the beautiful artworks that have been created and the ideas behind them. Find out more about the parade here: The Fabrics of Freedom: Celebration Parade
To me, art is one of the most powerful and joyful ways to express and celebrate our shared values. I am thrilled that, through this special project, Eastleigh’s community, including its youngest and oldest residents, will have a rare and precious chance to be inspired by each other’s visions of freedom. This is the true power of public art: to bring diverse people together, to serve as a collective canvas that builds bridges and unites, and to deepen our connections with each other and with what we hold most dear
Alisa will also be visiting The Point on Saturday 4th October between 10am and 5pm and is inviting members of the local community to take part in fun, hands-on drop-in workshop for all ages. Together, Alisa and participants will explore the theme of freedom through conversation, writing, drawing and collage. The ideas, stories, and creations from this day will further inspire Alisa with her designs - celebrating a wide range of voices from across our community.
This workshop is free to attend and open to everyone. No experience needed – just imagination, curiosity, and community spirit.
The Fabrics of Freedom project is one of 60 community-led commissions across the UK forming part of Our Freedom: Then and Now, a national programme supported by Arts Council England. The campaign commemorates the 80th anniversary of VE and VJ Day by inviting communities to reflect on the past and reimagine the future through creativity.
Further information about the Our Freedom: Then and Now project can be found at: https://ourfreedom.org.uk/