Kholod Hawash

For many years Kholod Hawash was working as an illustrator of children’s books for major publishers in Iraq.
Kholod Hawash uses the textile craft technique of jodaleia, the Arabic term for quilting. Traditionally, Iraqi quilts are created from reused textiles that are sewn together by hand and used to cover and protect furniture and walls.
Kholod Hawash gets her inspiration from memories of her mother’s quilting, Iraqi folklore and its myths and legends, as well as animals and nature in the rich
archaeological landscape where she grew up.

The motifs are dominated by strong feminist beliefs and our human longing for and right to freedom and self determination. Her colourful visual stories emerge stitch by stitch, the present and the past converging in a magical universe.