Yasse Saidi
Regaining Paradises, 2023
A collaboration with Julia-Anna Simonchuk


This piece stands as a dialogue between artists whose countries are experiencing internal (Iran) and external (Ukraine) threats. Through the practice of weaving, the work considers the receipt of protection from, and of, natural spaces, negotiating spiritual and militant relationships to nature. The concept of Paradise, traditionally reflected in many Persian carpet designs, is symbolically transfered to the domestic space, whilst today, camouflage nets are woven by volunteers as a unifying act, aiming to provide protection for those Ukrainians who are fighting. Both communicate the symbiotic relationship between the internal, the external, the spiritual, decorative and the functional.

Open Studios,
Central Saint Martins 2023

Audience members were welcome to engage with the piece, weaving into the warp and weft of the loom.



