E x h i b i t i o n D e s i g n | 1000 Voices for Yazidis
Creative Direction | Technical development & Administration | Staff Instruction | workshop instruction | Conceptual Development | Research | Interaction Design | Interactive Sculpture | Electronics
Client: Ministry of State Baden-Württemberg
Designers: Ayanna Baldeo, Vivian Darges, Melanie Fischer, Didem Gezginci, Melanie Laudin, Sophie Mehlhart
Notebook Display shelf: Jean Böhm, Michael Speichert
Exhibition Photography: Maunel Fleig
Audio recording: Tanina Holz
Audio Editing: Alexander Dick
//Under the patronage of the Ministry of State Baden-Württemberg the exhibition “1000 Voices for Yazidis” is created to red-flag the genocide committed by the Daesh against the Yazidis in North Iraq. So-called ISIS aimed the extinction of Yazidi culture through killing men and enslaving women and children. 1000 women and children in need of protection are housed in Germany to recover from their traumas. The main goal of the project is to give a voice to the victims, but protect their privacy.//
//In workshops with these women we figured out which message they want to give and which hopes and dreams they have for the future. First, they wanted to initiate financial help to the rescued Yazidis in the refugee camp in North Iraq and second, explain their religion and culture which was often misunderstood as satanism. So we decided to design an exhibition which explains the Yazidi religion and culture, raises the awareness of the genocide and sell artwork we produced with the women to send help.//
//The core of the exhibition is the room of “Lalish” – the sacral chapel of the Yazidis. The characteristic towers were turned into interactive walk-in sculptures by designer and artist Didem Gezginci in collaboration with Vivian Darges. By touching the tower the sound of the Yazidi women appears out of the wooden sheets and creates a sacral acoustic through the whole exhibition area.//
//The 2 meters tall towers are painted with a conductive pattern which is connected to a circuit board which controls the sound. Didem Gezginci used vibration speaker to make the sound come out of the wooden sheets directly to create a sacral experience. The pattern she used was created by Yazidi women and design students.//
//The Yazidi women were invited to the opening event and got touched by the atmosphere of the “Lalish” room. They started to make knots in scarfs they put on the towers – a Yazidi ritual to make wishes come true.//
//The exhibition ends up with a charity shop with artwork made by Yazidi women and design students in the workshops like silkscreen posters, journals and 1000 little pocketbooks for the 1000 voices of Yazidis in Germany.//
