Widad Kawar (Arabic: وداد قعوار) is a Palestinian art historian and collector of Palestinian and Jordanian ethnic and cultural arts. She has collected over 2,000 dresses, costumes, textiles, and jewelry over 50 years, seeking to preserve a culture that has been largely dispersed by conflict.[1][2] Kawar is known as Umm l'ibas al-falastini—the mother of Palestinian dress.[3]

Biography

Kawar was born in Tulkarm city to a Palestinian Christian family in 1931.[4] Her family moved to Bethlehem in 1941.[2] Her father Jalil was a teacher and head of juvenile school system in British Mandate government of Palestine. She studied at the American University of Beirut.[2][3]

Kawar has made her collection available for public viewing and has mounted exhibits of Palestinian dress around the world. She has written many books on Palestinian embroidery and is seeking to establish a Gallery of Cultural Embroidery . She collaborated with Margaret Skinner on A Treasury of Stitches: Palestinian Embroidery Motifs, 1850–1950 (Rimal/Melisende).[5] She additionally wrote Threads of Identity: Preserving Palestinian Costume and Heritage (Rimal/Melisende).[6]

Widad is a member of the Board of Trustees of the American Center for Oriental Research. She has established the Tiraz Centre which runs small museum in Amman, housing her collection and dedicated to the preservation of Palestinian and Jordanian cultural traditions.[7]

In 2012, Kawar won the Prince Klaus International Award for culture and development.[8]

Published work

  • Skinner, Margarita, and Widad Kamel Kawar. Palestinian Embroidery Motifs: A Treasury of Stitches, 1850-1950. Melisende, 2014.
  • Kawar, Widad: Threads of Identity: Preserving Palestinian Costume and Heritage ISBN 978-9963-610-41-9 Rimal Publications. 2011
  • Kawar, Widad and Shelagh Weir: Costumes and Wedding Customs in Bayt Dajan. "biography". Kawar Arab Heritage Collection. Archived from the original on 2006-10-09.
  • Kawar, Widad and Tania Nasir: Palestinian Embroidery : Traditional "Fallahi" Cross-Stitch ISBN 3-927270-04-0. Munich, State Museum of Ethnography. 1992.
  • Kawar, Widad: Pracht Und Geheimnis - Kleidung Und Schmuck Aus Palästina Und Jordanien ISBN 3-923158-15-7 Rautenstrauch-Joest Museum Munich. 1987

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Widad Kamel Kawar with an endowment from her late husband Widad he established small center and museum in Amman Jordan to house this unique collection". Rimal Publications. Archived from the original on 16 January 2014. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
  2. 1 2 3 Stories of the catastrophe: Exile
  3. 1 2 "Traditional Costumes from Jordan and Palestine: The Private Collection of Widad Kawar". Darat al Funun. Archived from the original on 22 September 2012. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
  4. ↑ Philip,Mattar,Encyclopedia of the Palestinians,page 409
  5. ↑ Benny Ziffer (23 November 2007). "A stitch in time". Haaretz. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
  6. ↑ "Rimal Publications :: Online Store :: Books :: Art & Culture :: Threads of Identity". web.archive.org. 2014-01-18. Retrieved 2023-12-02.
  7. ↑ "Widad Kawar | Tiraz". www.tirazcentre.org. Retrieved 2023-12-02.
  8. ↑ "Widad Kawar". Prince Claus Fund. Retrieved 2023-12-02.


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