Heavy Lace
Traditional handicrafts of Roma women from Finland
Travelling Roma lace traders were part of the life of Finnish markets, village festivals, station halls and factory towns until the end of the last century. With the social upheavals after the Second World War, Roma men lost their horses and their traditional professions, but the women could support an entire large family with their skillful lace work. However, especially in the remote villages of Eastern Finland the Roma lace merchants were not always welcomed: sometimes the farmers opened their doors armed with a shotgun.
The exhibition is realised by the curator of the Nordic Roma Museum, film director Katariina Lillqvist together with museum pedagogue Helena Grönfors and her working group. In the exhibition, you will see not only lace, but also documentaries about the Roma community in Finland, historical photographs, animations and comic album originals from the museum's educational material collections.
Gallery in the Tower, New Town Hall
Open: Tuesday to Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm (lunch break from 12 to 1 pm)
Admission: Full CZK 90, concession and groups CZK 60, families CZK 160
https://eriac.org/the-museum-of-finnish-roma-culture/
https://www.romarchive.eu/en/collection/song-of-the-gallows/film-still-from-song-of-the-gallows/