Collections create connections : stitching the lives of marginalised women on the national memory canvas

Abstract

In his work Past beyond memory: Evolution, museums, colonialism, Tony Bennett asks how museums can ‘shed the legacy of evolutionary conceptions and colonial science, so that they can contribute to the development and management of cultural diversity more effectively’. This question is of particular pertinence in the South African context where for a long time the material found in public or governmentfunded museums on those not from the dominant sectors of society presented these marginalised people as ‘objects rather than citizens and individual actors in their own right’. Issues of inclusion or connection and exclusion are central to democracy – who feels connected to civil society, who does not, and why? Who feels their voice is heard and who does not? Over the past few decades a number of community embroidery projects have been initiated in formerly marginalised areas. These projects have made a name for themselves in terms of their artistic merit and have participated in exhibitions both nationally and internationally. Proponents of these initiatives claim that they go beyond connecting these craft artists with a wider audience. This paper will discuss how these collections of embroidered story cloths can contribute to a more inclusive society by combatting disadvantage, empowering communities and developing social capital so that people can have an informed involvement in the creation of an inclusive South African national memory.