Virtual Laundry Day - In Partnership with the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library

We all have a story to tell. On Saturday August 22nd, from 11am-noon, YOU are invited to be a part of the narrative, make your story visible, and connect with other women at a Virtual Laundry Day Workshop with local artist and creator of Airing Out the "Dirty" Laundry, Andrea Downs. Andrea is working in partnership with the Charlotte Mecklenburg Library to create this opportunity. Airing Out the "Dirty" Laundry is an ongoing community art movement that responds to the silencing of women*, creating Laundry Day opportunities for all women to share experiences of strength, unity, hope and resistance of oppression, injustice, and exclusion through visual storytelling.

*Airing Out the “Dirty” Laundry holds space for all women across the intersections of race, age, color, disability, faith, religion, ancestry, national origin, citizenship, social class, economic class, ethnicity, gender identity and gender expression. You don't need any artistic skill to participate, just a desire to share your story. There is never pressure to share your story verbally. Some women find that holding space with other women allows them to process a story. These hour-long Virtual Laundry Day opportunities hold space for you to hear more about the purpose behind Airing Out the "Dirty" Laundry, see a variety of examples of pieces that women have already created, and time to begin considering the story that you would like to share. Since the entire collection of more than 400 stories is currently installed at The Mint Museum Uptown, Andrea will be meeting with you live from inside the space! If possible, identify and have available articles of clothing or other textiles or pieces of fabric, photos or even things that you have written that could serve as the base layer for your piece. To see examples of the types of articles of clothing and fabrics that women have used, please find some time to engage with women's stories about their process here: https://www.aotdl.org/stories Your signed or anonymous piece can be created and completed at home and then mailed to me at 613 Neill Ridge Road, Matthews, NC 28105 and will become a part of the ever growing collection of women's stories and joined together on laundry clotheslines in ongoing installations of Airing Out the "Dirty" Laundry. Andrea Downs is a visual artist, activist, community arts organizer, and educator. Through her work, Andrea strives to foster collaboration and connection through the building of community connections and an open invitation for a diverse community dialogue. At the center of her work is the value of relationships, connectivity, identity, and open engagement to build stronger communities.

Her most important work, in partnership with her husband, is raising her two children to stand for equality and justice.

Andrea lives and works in Charlotte, North Carolina. Please connect with women's stories here www.aotdl.org and on Instagram @womenslaundry and FB https://www.facebook.com/WeBelieveInEquality/ before the event.