Armenian Embroidery: Svaz and Van (Beginner)
Two Day Workshop: Saturday, August 1 & 8, 2026
1-4 PM
$80 | General
$60 | Textile Museum Members
Join us for an afternoon of slow, meditative embroidery with Jadi Darawi. In this beginner-friendly, hands-on workshop, participants will be introduced to the rich history of Armenian embroidery and traditional clothing. Darawi will then teach participants two regional techniques, Svaz and Van, from the Sivas/Sebastia and Van-Vaspourakan regions of Western Armenian (modern day Turkey).
Finally, participants will have the opportunity to practice these techniques and create a small piece to take home with them at the end of the workshop!
No previous experience is required. All materials are provided. If you require reading glasses, it is highly recommended to bring them to this workshop.
For any questions or accessibility accommodations, please contact Isabelle Sain (isain@textilemuseum.ca).
Facilitator Biography:
Jadi Darawi is an artist and educator based in Toronto, Canada. They are the descendant of a long line of women creating textile art, garments, and household items. After growing up surrounded by this artistry, Jadi began their own textile journey at the age of 19 and has been stitching ever since.
Jadi is an internationally exhibited textile artist, whose work has been shown most recently in Toronto and New York City. Selected exhibition credits include “Gender Mend” (Textile Arts Center, 2026), “The Name Of” (Gibraltar Point Centre for the Arts, 2026), and “Collective/Memory” (Sur Gallery, 2025).
Jadi is currently the Education Assistant at the Textile Museum of Canada, where they support workshops and events, lead tours and group visits, and manage the intake of donations in the Museum’s Reuse Centre. Outside of the Museum, Jadi is a graduate student at Toronto Metropolitan University in the Communication and Culture program. Their research examines the impact of forced migration during the Armenian Genocide (1915-1917) on Armenian embroidery, past and present.
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