Hope: Weaving Communities Together

Exhibition runs from 8–24 November

Hope: Weaving Communities Together is a project conceived by multimedia artist Elaine Foster-Gandey during the pandemic years. The project’s purpose is to look at ways to bring people together when we were all apart.

The work included over 500 marginalized voices including The Nepalese ladies’ group. The work toured the UK with workshops & performances held during the exhibitions.

After securing additional funding, Elaine was invited to exhibit the giant sculpture dress at the Venice Biennale. Pabitra was invited to work with Elaine holding workshops with her community that saw outcomes exhibited alongside Pabitra’s work in Kent & London.

About the Artists:

Elaine Foster-Gandey is a dynamic multimedia artist known for her immersive, socially engaged projects and expansive artistic range. An Arts Council-funded creator, she gained acclaim for her recent project Hope – Weaving Communities Together, which united over 500 participants in crafting a monumental woven sculpture filled with messages of hope. This collaborative piece has toured the UK and is now showcased at the Venice Biennale, celebrating the power of collective storytelling and Craftivism.

Elaine’s work delves into themes of transformation, autobiography, and the body as a narrative site. Her art frequently explores the dress as both personal artifact and cultural symbol, combining re-enactment and process-driven creation. Her practice spans diverse media, including textiles, sculpture, performance, printmaking, costume, drawing, film, and ceramics. Known for her commitment to community and collaboration, Elaine’s art creates a space where individual and shared stories intertwine, offering new perspectives on identity, resilience, and belonging.

IG: @fostergandeyart

Pabitra Ale 

I was born in Nepal and have been living in Maidstone, Kent since 2000 with husband, Major Prem and our three children.

Whilst working as a Playgroup Assistant, I learned Textile making in 2004 from the Adult Education Centre.  I joined the Book-Binding and a Creative Writing course in 2013, and wrote my book “English- Nepalese” & ‘I am bilingual’.

I engaged in making Textile work for Involve, the Kent charity shop in 2016-2019 and then joined Drawing & Painting, where I created an Illustration book “When I Remember Back” and some Nepalese featured paintings to exhibit at the Maidstone  museum in 2020.I drew during the Covid-19 lockdown period and felt quite isolated and worried and being socially distanced from people so I created an Illustration book called, “Out Of Blue, Life Story “.

In 2o21 I met Elaine when I was invited onto the ‘Hope – weaving communities together’ project.  I created some textile pieces for the project including a textiles bag, some portraits and table mats. In this special exhibition at Poplar Union, I helped Elaine and others weave one of the sleeves.

FB: Pabitra Ale