The Global Peace Tiles Project

Building bonds between people and communities through art

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Welcome!

Peace Tiles is a growing network of people using the arts to inspire social change. Peace Tiles are being used to brighten the spotlight on issues, raise funds to support causes, and inspire hope in communities around the world, from Thailand to Tanzania, Canada to Costa Rica, from India to Indiana.

This year, December 12 marks World AIDS Day and another opportunity to contribute to the global effort to eradicate AIDS.

About Tiles

Peace Tiles are 8″ x 8″ collages and mixed media assemblages created on 1/2-inch thick wood panel. A Peace Tile is most often produced in a workshop environment during which participants are invited to discuss a topic, reflect on their response to the conversation through writing, and then respond to that topic through visual expression.

A Peace Tile can include paper items such as photos, letters, magazine cut-outs and newspaper items as well as scraps of cloth, organic matter like leaves or sand, paint, and almost any other mixed media item that can be applied to the wood surface.

Peace Tiles can be used in many ways, for example exchanged with others or combined into murals that capture the “visual voice” of youth. A Peace Tiles mural composed of many individual works of art can be exhibited temporarily or installed permanently - at a local venue or thousands of miles away as a gift that reflects a bond between communities.

[Top] The tile shown above was made by New York based artist and illustrator Krupa Jhaveri during Peace Tiles’ first summer workshop in Cabot, Vermont.

[Right] World AIDS Day 2005 exhibition of Peace Tiles from 12 countries hosted by the Visual Arts and Crafts Academy at the Bus Factory in Johannesburg, South Africa.

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Why Make Tiles?

Peace Tiles are a great resource for many kinds of activities. Here are just a few ideas:

  1. Intergroup Dialogue
    Sometimes it can be hard to get groups of people talking together. Have each group make their own Peace Tiles and make the issues addressed in Tiles the subject of conversation.
  2. Awareness-raising
    In our age of mass electronic media, having an important issue addressed though an exhibition of authentic, tangible media can be a powerful experience.
  3. Fundraising
    Turn the Peace Tiles process into a fundraiser for your next outreach effort. Raise community support for a cause you care about by hosting a “Tile-A-Thon.” Or perhaps some reknown artists you know would be willing to make some tiles for sale during a benefit auction?
  4. Exchange
    Use Peace Tiles as a way to reach out into the world and make new connections or strengthen existing ones. Exchange individual tiles or an entire mural with another school or organization.
  5. Materials Development
    Peace Tiles are a rich trove of information about how people see the world and particular issues. They can also be great art. Use them in discussion guides, post cards, and other kinds of printed material.
  6. For Fun
    Making art is a great way to enliven any group setting. Creativity and self-expression encourage people of all ages to open up in new ways and get to know each other better. Peace Tiles can be kept, exchanged, or combined as a lasting memento.

Join us at Facebook to learn more and get involved!

Who’s Making Tiles?

The success of the Global Peace Tiles Project would not be possible without the dedication and talent of our partners around the world.  These include:

ARTS FOR GLOBAL DEVELOPMENT NETWORK
Global

GIRL CHILD ART FOUNDATION
Nigeria

NATIONAL COALITION FOR DIALOGUE AND DELIBERATION
USA

NED.COM
Global

NEXTAID
South Africa and USA

SOLID
Lesotho and Canada

TAKINGITGLOBAL
Canada and Global

VISUAL VOICES
USA

…and many others. Join us at Facebook to meet some of them, learn more and get involved!

Resources

Considering hosting your own Peace Tiles event? Feel free to use any of our resources to help you along the way. Developed your own? Share it by emailing peacetiles at gmail dot com.

Peace Tiles Pattern Book

Peace Tiles World AIDS Day Discussion Guide

Peace Tiles \"What Is My Place?\" Pack

How to Organize A Peace Tiles \"Create-a-thon\"

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about peace tiles

The Global Peace Tiles project is a fun way to involve people everywhere in arts-based learning and sharing. To date, more than 3,000 people - from 7 to 70 - in over a dozen countries have produced thousands of works of art that have been combined into vibrant murals. Produced in structured workshops, these tiles have been used in many ways - to respond to urgent issues like HIV/AIDS (advocacy), to explore aspects of community (self-expression), to learn more about a topic like children in conflict (education), to build connections among groups of people (exchange), and to work through trauma (therapy). We're still learning how Peace Tiles can be used as a research tool. Join us at Facebook to learn more and get involved! Feedback? Email peacetiles at gmail dot com