“Home is a shelter from storms-all sorts of storms”
William J. Bennett
WHY: home as a concept and a space is charged with emotions, sense of belonging and the way we make our home often represent our identity. But what happens when you have to leave home, what choices do you need to make and how do you start over building a new home? These are among the few challenges migrants and refugees women have to make during their migratory journey. What if you can have the opportunity to experience these stories and understand what home means for migrant and refugee women?
WHAT: In this workshop we will explore what home means for you, how do you make yourself feel at home, and what are the elements and objects that represent home for you.
HOW: We will first talk about the project Being There and explain what both Universities (UDEM and BUas) are doing together with refugee and migrant centers in Mexico, with the United Nations Refugee Agency and technology partners like 4DRstudios and Oregon Reality Lab. How and why we created the first Virtual Reality museum for migrant women and how this is connected to their stories of home and migration. Then we will have a working session where we will ask you two things: (a) to find your favorite space in your home and take a picture(s) of that space and think about why and how this place makes you feel like home. Second (b), we will ask you to find one object at your home that you would take with you if you have to leave home. We will gather all pictures, stories and objects and discuss them with you to figure out what home means for you and how those notions can actually be transformed into interior design solutions to create homely spaces.
WHO: This workshop is open for everybody, but will be provided in English. The workshop will be guided by Dr. Shima Rezaei Rashnoodi (interior design professor at University of Monterrey, Mexico) and Professor Dr. Marnix van Gisbergen (professor Digital Media Concepts at Breda University of Applied sciences).
