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The Water Diviners with Jumana Emil Abboud: Taster session
Come along to this taster session to learn more about the Water Diviners project and get a feel for how the workshops will run. Key themes for the summer sessions will be introduced, including oral narratives, water-lore, myths, and magical mirrors.
+44 (0)20 7942 2000
Past Event
The Water Diviners is a project by artist Jumana Emil Abboud, who uses storytelling to explore water, heritage, imagination and the future. Jumana’s work began with research on wells and springs in Palestine, which are sites with magical, spiritual, and folkloric significance. This history is preserved and continued in the Palestinian tradition of collective storytelling.
First developed in the Occupied West Bank village of ‘Ein Qiniya in Palestine in 2020, each Water Diviners workshop builds upon a growing anthology of stories composed by people from all over the world. For its first UK activation, the Water Diviners will be hosted at the V&A, and we are seeking participants for a series of sessions this summer.
The group will meet up to 8 times on Friday evenings in June, July and August. The workshops will culminate in a collective spoken-word performance during the V&A Friday Late on 19 September 2025, which is part of London Design Festival.
Things to note:
•
The workshops are open to anyone 18 years or older.
•
All sessions take place at V&A South Kensington.
•
No experience of writing, storytelling, spoken-word or performance is necessary, and you do not need to speak English as a first language.
•
The workshops are free. Those taking part in the performance will be paid £13.85 per hour for their time on the day (Friday 19 September).
•
We hope participants will attend as many sessions as possible over the course of the project, and will commit to at least 3. Participation in the final performance is not obligatory.
At the end of this taster session, you can decide whether to sign up for the rest of the workshops.
First developed in the Occupied West Bank village of ‘Ein Qiniya in Palestine in 2020, each Water Diviners workshop builds upon a growing anthology of stories composed by people from all over the world. For its first UK activation, the Water Diviners will be hosted at the V&A, and we are seeking participants for a series of sessions this summer.
The group will meet up to 8 times on Friday evenings in June, July and August. The workshops will culminate in a collective spoken-word performance during the V&A Friday Late on 19 September 2025, which is part of London Design Festival.
Things to note:
•
The workshops are open to anyone 18 years or older.
•
All sessions take place at V&A South Kensington.
•
No experience of writing, storytelling, spoken-word or performance is necessary, and you do not need to speak English as a first language.
•
The workshops are free. Those taking part in the performance will be paid £13.85 per hour for their time on the day (Friday 19 September).
•
We hope participants will attend as many sessions as possible over the course of the project, and will commit to at least 3. Participation in the final performance is not obligatory.
At the end of this taster session, you can decide whether to sign up for the rest of the workshops.
