This project focused on telling the story of refugee women in Waterloo Region through Art. It was coordinated by CAWA (previously: the Arab Women of Waterloo Region) and presented the journey of immigrant women from home and/or host country to Canada. Art sessions were offered to the women by two local and one newcomer (Syrian) artists to teach women how to draw and present themselves through Art. The artists conducted some interviews with women to understand experiences of the women on their journey to the Region of Waterloo. At the end of the project, we had a display of all women and artists’ pieces at the Rotunda of the City of Kitchener and invited the community members to attend the event. More than 11 sessions were held to finalize all art work at Victoria Hills Community Center and Kingsdale Community Center from December 2017 till March 2018.
The newcomer women were very involved in this project and they indicated that it helped them to share their feelings and experiences with others. Also, they indicated that this project was a stress relief of what they went through their journey to Canada. Many tears were shed and there were concerns about how this would help to share their story.After the art display at the City of Kitchener, other organizations like The MUSUEM have approached CAWA to have the art work displayed for the refugee’s Day in June of 2018.
