Past Exhibitions

Helms Design Center

Aug 4-Sept 25, 2022

Helms Bakery District is hosting Welcome Blanket at the Helms Design Center! Come visit, and be part of the process! Here's the link to Helms’ main page so you can plan your visit. Show closes Sunday, September 18 with the “Welcome Back” installation and conversation.

August 4 Opening:

On Thursday, August 4th from 6:30 – 8:30 PM, please join us for an opening reception of Welcome Blanket with founder Jayna Zweiman in conversation with cultural journalist Frances Anderton. Welcome Blanket makes its inaugural Los Angeles exhibit at Helms Bakery District

Craft Alongs:

Our next craft along is September 13, 4pm. Previous craft alongs led by Welcome Blanket participants August 6, 14, and 20th were wonderful ways to come together!

Film Screening and Conversation:

On Thursday, September 15 7-8:30, please join us for a conversation and film screening with filmmaker Khadim Dai.

Khadim Dai is a filmmaker from Afghanistan. His family fled to Pakistan when he was two years old to escape Taliban persecution of his minority group, the Hazara people. He lived most of his life as a refugee in Pakistan, and after surviving from a school bombing, he fled on his own to Indonesia. There, he lived in the refugee settlement for three years and started documenting his experience. Khadim has been making documentary films since 2014, His films have been shown at the Van Abbemuseum, Ian Potter Museum of Art, QUT Art Museum, and at the REDCAT.

Smart Museum of Art, 2017

The Smart Museum of Art at University of Chicago was Welcome Blanket’s inaugural host. We are thankful for all of the support, thoughtfulness and creativity the Smart staff and volunteers have brought to the project. For more about Welcome Blanket at the Smart, here is the Museum’s page and press release.

Here are some images of the gallery exhibition:

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What makes Welcome Blanket so special? The people who touch it and make it happen. Young and old, experienced and novice crafters, people of all backgrounds came together to make a bold statement of welcome. Here are some images of people and programs in and about the exhibition:

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As part of the Smart Museum programming, Jayna Zweiman was invited to have a conversation with Judy Chicago that was moderated by Alison Gass, Director of the Smart.

Want to check out the Welcome Blankets delivered to the Smart? Check them out:

MODA, 2018

The Museum of Design Atlanta was the second host of Welcome Blanket. We were thrilled to be part of Betsy Greer’s “Making Change: the Art and Craft of Activism.” MODA is a gem of a place. We aren’t the only ones who think so.

Here's the link to MODA’s Welcome Blanket Exhibition Page. We also loved their blog entry on the Welcome Blanket experience.

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Fuller Craft Museum, 2019

Fuller Craft was the third host of Welcome Blanket. The Fuller had representation from all 50 states!

Here’s the exhibition announcement from the Fuller:

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Build Peace Borderlands, 2019

Jayna Zweiman was an artist-in-residence at the Build Peace Conference in Sand Diego and Tijuana. It was an opportunity to connect with peace builders and people seeking asylum.

Interwoven: Craft, Story, Immigration, 2019

In September 2019, Welcome Blanket Brookline organized a multi-day immigration celebration: “Interwoven: Craft, Story, Immigration.”

Los Feliz Food and Art Festival, Los Angeles, 2019

Miry’s List Inaugural New Arrivals Festival, 2018

Casa Michoacán, 2018
University of Chicago Laboratory School, 2018

Teachers took on Welcome Blanket and incorporated the project as part of a learning module about the history of craft and self portraiture. They hosted a satellite exhibition of Welcome Blankets from the Smart Museum and added their gorgeous work to create something entirely their own.

MODA, 2021 (happening NOW!)

LAX, 2022 (upcoming)

After these shows close, they are distributed to refugee resettlement agencies who then gifts them to our newest neighbors. For more, check out Where do the Welcome Blankets go?