Power, Change, Movement, Home, Listening
This collective textile artwork was co-created by attendees during a day of workshops, conversations, and creative making at the Activist in Residence Festival hosted by King’s College London. The Festival was a gathering of activists, artists, organisers, researchers, and community members reflecting on how activism takes shape within and beyond the university.
Through guided workshops on collective crafting and storytelling, participants exploring the themes of Power, Change, Movement, Home, and Listening. Each square represents an individual reflection—stitched, drawn, painted, or written—on what resistance, care, and belonging mean in practice. Together, they form a visual conversation between this year’s four Activist‑in‑Residence projects:
- Rebel by Default – HIV and women’s lived experience
- Language Justice – multilingual politics and inclusion
- Moving Together – decolonising wellness and belonging in ESEA diaspora
- Race Across the Channel – confronting racism and media denial in Europe
More than a decorative object, this banner is a living archive of the relationships, tensions, and hope generated through activist–academic collaboration. It stands as a living archive of shared dialogue, reminding us that activism is not only about speaking out, but also about listening deeply, making together, and imagining new ways of doing and being in community.
Special thanks to Charity Nyirenda, whose skill and dedication brought this piece to life, stitching together three days of collective work into a single, resonant whole.
To find out more about the wider debate of these projects, please visit:
- As universities embrace the civic, they must transcend activist–academic binaries – Wonkhe
- An academic article about our pilot AiR scheme at King’s (2019–2021)