Nour Shantout – Stitching Protest: Workshop of Palestinian embroidery

[scroll down for English] We invite you to a Palestinian embroidery workshop led by the artist Nour Shantout, which will take place from September 4 to 6 in the Great Hall of the Trade Fair Palace as part of the Biennale In the Matter of Art 2026. The workshop will be preceded by an introductory lecture on September 3 from 4 p.m.

Language availability: English
📍 Tent, Great Hall
Free entry after registration

3. September: theoretical part, lecture on the history of Palestinian embroidery, open to all
4.-6. September: practical part of the workshop, only for registered participants

➡️ info/registration: https://matterof.art/cz/udalosti/stitching-protest-workshop-palestinske-vysivky-s-nour-shantout

Palestinian embroidery the nakba of 1948 transformed it from a domestic craft used for personal purposes into a political tool and a way to create an alternative map of Palestine. For example, the "intifada" dress appeared a few months after the first intifada (uprising) in 1987. It featured a map of Palestine along with the Palestinian flag, olive branches and a dove of peace, alongside traditional motifs and political slogans. Palestinian women embroidered these dresses and wore them during protests; they embroidered the Palestinian flag and wore it when it was banned. In this workshop, participants will learn about the history of Palestinian embroidery in relation to the protests and anti-imperialist feminist movement in Palestine. Nour Shantout will also teach the participants the cross-stitch technique.
As part of this workshop, which is part of a series dedicated to embroidery and protests, the participants will create a joint work.

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We invite you to a workshop of Palestinian embroidery led by artist Nour Shantout, which will take place from September 4 to September 6, in the Great Hall of the National Gallery Prague – Trade Fair Palace, as part of the Biennale Matter of Art 2026. Prior to the workshop, there will be a lecture on the history of Palestinian embroidery taking place on September 3, from 4 p.m.

Language accessibility: English
📍 The Tent, Great Hall
Free entry upon registration

September 3: Theoretical part, lecture on the history of Palestinian embroidery, open to anyone
September 4–6: Practical part of the workshop, for registered participants only
counter-mapping Palestine after the 1948 Nakba. For instance, "intifada dresses" emerged a few months after the First Intifada (uprising) in 1987. They featured the Palestinian map along with the Palestinian flag, olive branches, and the Dove of Peace, in addition to traditional motifs and political slogans. Palestinian women embroidered these dresses and wore them during protests; they stitched the Palestinian flag and wore it when it was banned. In this workshop, the participants will learn about the history of Palestinian embroidery in relation to protest and to the anti-imperialist feminist movement in Palestine. Nour Shantout will also teach the cross-stitch technique. As part of this workshop, which is one in a series dedicated to embroidery and protest, participants will create a collective piece. 6 - 13 September 2026
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ART / ARTISTS
AntiGonna, Noor Abed, Szymon Adamczak, Željka Aleksić, Gleb Amankulov, David Apakidze Yana Bachynska / Jan Bačynsjkyj, Jürgen Baldiga, Leila Basma & Zaher Jureidini, Rufina Bazlova / Stitch It Collective, Ștefan Bertalan, Cezary Bodzianowski, Tina Bxtq, Michal Durda / Room temperature, Jan Durina, Fůd, GALAS (Галас), Hana Garová, Ladislava Gažiová, Davyd Chychkan, Nosrat Karimi, Seba Kayan, Anne-Mie Van Kerckhoven, Adrián Kriška, Běla Kolářová, circle of intersection, Isadora Neves Marques, Nadia Markiewicz, Zoi Michailova, Shabu Mwangi, Aron Neubert, Aliza Orlan, Bronislava Orlická & Zuzana Smrkovská, Taring Padi, Cezary Poniatowski, Publik Universal Frxnd, Margaret Raspé, Nour Shantout, Shella Radio, Alex Sihelsk*, Felipe Steinberg, StonyTellers, Alina Sokolova, Fedir Tetyanych, Huda Takriti, Liliana Zeic, Jiří Žák

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The biennale is organized by the non-profit initiative for contemporary art tranzit.cz in cooperation with the National Gallery Prague, the City Gallery Pardubice (GAMPA) and Petrohradská kolektiv. tranzit.cz is part of the tranzit.org network, whose main partner is the ERSTE foundation. Biennale In the Matter of Art 2026 takes place under the auspices of the first lady of the Czech Republic, Eva Pavlova, and the mayor of the Prague 7 district, Jan Čižínský. / The biennale is organized by the nonprofit initiative for contemporary art tranzit.cz in cooperation with the National Gallery Prague, the City Gallery Pardubice (GAMPA), and Petrohradská kolektiv. tranzit.cz is part of the tranzit.org network. The main partner of tranzit.org is ERSTE Foundation.