The aim of Simsalabim
Simsalabim aims mainly :
- to preserve and to develop needlework and textile art as part of our Intangible Cultural Heritage
If we want needlework and textile arts to survive, we should transmit our knowledge in these fields to the younger generations and stimulate young people to take part in textile activities. It is also important to show the public that needlework and textile arts are still going strong, for example through international and national Forums and Shows.
Why aiming at this?
Needlework and textile art seems to be disappearing gradually in Switzerland. Not being considered as an heirloom, needlework is generally regarded as oldfashioned. When choosing a profession, young people today would never even think of taking up textiles as a professional activity, which has absolutely no future on the Swiss employment market, except for design and haute couture. Instead, teenagers are encouraged to choose Finance, Banking, Insurance and Data Science if they want to be successful later on in life.
It is sad to say, but needlework and textiles are not highly thought of in Switzerland. The skills that traditionally belonged to women, i.e. basic weaving and all types of needlework, are today scorned and looked down upon. Young women prefer playing with their new portable phones rather than being occupied with needlework. A great deal of Swiss women under 40 cannot even sew a button nor start a simple cross-stitch embroidery on their own. Swiss men's knowledge of needlework is even poorer - apart from being totally helpless in front of a needle, they generally show a very negative and contemptuous attitude towards needlework and textiles. Nowadays, these branches are mostly associated with mentally and physically handicapped people as a therapy for their ailments.
More than two centuries ago, machines started replacing the work of craftsmen and craftswomen. Their professional skills are now slowly disappearing, and it is mainly thanks to women's hobbies that needlework and textiles have survived as manual crafts and arts. Still there are artisans that try to make a living of their work. These people are generally not taken very seriously, atleast not in Switzerland, and their professional activities are often spat upon. In modern society, professional success is unfortunately mesured only by the quantity of money that is being paid for a specific job.
In Switzerland, even women themselves do not value their skills of needlework and textiles very highly. They 'knit a little something' or they 'do some cross-stitch in front of the TV, just for fun'. But when you truly start asking, these women reveal that they create knitting patterns or they do their own cross-stitch design. These skills should be seen as highly productive and valuable. Honestly, I do not know any bank manager or sollicitor who could compete with these women in creation and design, do you?!
For a long time now, needlework and textiles have been the domaine of women. If we in Switzerland continue to despise and to reduce them as a simple 'passion' for idle ladies, the textile domaine is slowly going to disappear totally, at least in Switzerland. That is why I strike back : I want to prove that needlework and textiles are not futile and a whimsical 'passion' but that they are indeed true professional domaines worthy of respect.
How to do this
Simsalabim tries to reach its aim by :
- offering a rich panoply of courses and tuition for all, from beginners to advanced levels
- offering high standard teaching with qualified tutors
- organising events around needlework and textile arts (for example trips, talks, courses and demonstrations)
- participating in different projects directly linked to needlework and textile arts
- producing handmade items and contemporary creations
- taking initiative to and being a support for creative and contemporary needlework
- giving information to the public on the rich needlework and textile art traditions that still survive
- drawing the attention of the public on the different activities that are still taking place around needlework and textile arts
Simsalabim is not a boutique nor a haberdashery, but a Centre gathering as many needlework and textile techniques as possible, in order to save these from oblivion and to transmit them to younger generations. Therefore, you will find different activities at Simsalabim, such as teaching, creation and production.
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