Since 2022
ARTTEN FOUNDATION
Artten Foundation uses craft, art and community to address the human consequences of war and displacement: grief, loneliness, isolation and loss of economic independence. Through free workshops, exhibitions and programmes, we help women connect, rebuild confidence and create new economic opportunities.
Worn close to the heart
Roses of Ties
Roses of Ties makes grief visible in a world shaped by war, displacement and separation. Handcrafted from discarded neckties by Ukrainian refugee women, each rose transforms something left behind into a symbol of connection and resilience. Through the act of making, craft becomes more than a skill – it becomes a way to cope with grief and loneliness, build community and create new agency. Worn close to the heart, Roses of Ties carries a gesture of remembrance, solidarity and hope for peace.
45+
Community workshops
600+
Neckties donated
850+
Workshop participants
550+
Roses worn close to the heart
Weaving Global Impact: Patterns of Empowerment, Solidarity, and Peace
Weaving art - Healing art
Turkey-Belarus
The project united women from Belarus and Turkey.
Ukraine-Greece-USA
Presentation of "Light Saves Lives" during Stockholm Design Week.
Belarus-Turkey-France
Women across borders and restrictions crochet for peace.
USA-Norway-Ukraine
The textile workshop at Oslo Freedom Forum.
Ukraine-Sweden
Flash Mob at Modern Art Museum in Stockholm for Museums' Night.
Ukraine-Sweden
Ukrainian and Swedish children painted a body of works for peace.
Collective Weaving for Peace
Gul&Blå:
Hela Sverige Flätar
Over 8,000 participants have taken part in the collective weaving of a 6 x 3 meter Swedish flag, side by side with Ukrainian refugees. Originally initiated to unite two nations during the centennial celebration of Stockholm City Hall (Stadshuset) in 2023, the project has since grown into a powerful symbol of integration. The weaving workshops have taken place across Sweden and have been documented in a Master’s thesis at Uppsala University (2025), as well as in the documentary Weaving by Hsuan Yu Pan (New York, USA).
85+
Workshops across Sweden
1000+
Hours of Creativity
10mln +
People's hopes and aspirations
55+
Meters of recycled textiles are utilized
MAKE A DIFFERENCE NOW
Ways to Get Involved
DONATE 100 SEK
Weave 1 Metre of Hope
Your contribution provides materials for one metre of camouflage net, handmade to help protect lives in Ukraine.
DONATE 500 SEK
Weave 5 Metre of Hope
Your contribution provides materials for five metres of camouflage net, handmade to help protect lives in Ukraine.
WEAVE TOGETHER
Meaningful Team-Building
Bring your team together through collective making. Weave camouflage net while building connection, empathy and resilience.
Donate Your Ties
Ties into Roses
Donated neckties are transformed into Roses of Ties during our community workshops - supporting well-being and women’s agency.
Ludmila Christeseva is an accomplished artist and curator, recognized for her commitment to amplifying female voices in the arts through various international projects.
With the onset of the war in Ukraine, Christeseva took the lead in organizing public textile workshops focused on the production of camouflage nets. Her noble aim was to contribute to saving lives in Ukraine. During this period, she formed an art collective named “Crafts that Unite, Heal, and Last,” consisting of Ukrainian refugee mothers and children who wove for peace.
In acknowledgment of her significant societal impact, bringing hope and optimism to those who lost families and homes, Ludmila Christeseva was nominated for the Nelson Mandela Prize. She achieved further acclaim by winning the prestigious Impact of the Year 2023 award from IHM Impact Awards, solidifying her dedication to making a positive change through her artistic initiatives.
Global Sisterhood
Committed To Empowering Women
Weaving, knitting, and other forms of craft have long been part of women’s invisible labor across generations and cultures. At ARTTEN Foundation, we work to bring this understanding back into communities and public conversation.
A world without crafts is a world without women – without mothers, sisters, care, memory, and shared knowledge. Through our projects, we promote craft as a method of making women visible, not only as artists or curators, but as carriers of culture, resilience, and collective memory.
Democracy and Gender Equality
Our initiatives are designed as collaborative spaces where women come together to exchange knowledge, support one another, heal, and strengthen wellbeing through collective creative practice. In a fragmented world shaped by war, migration, and social isolation, craft becomes a language of connection, care, and continuity.
We address patterns of exclusion, structural inequalities, and unequal power relations through art, craft, education, and community-based collaboration. By creating spaces for participation, storytelling, and intercultural exchange, we aim to strengthen women’s visibility, agency, and wellbeing while contributing to a more inclusive and equitable society.
- Unique curatorial strategies
- Networking and collaboration
- Education and coaching
- Sustainability
Made in Solidarity and Compassion
Suzani for Peace
The “Suzani for Peace” project amplifies women’s voices for peace through various artistic expressions. Women globally have joined the project, contributing their unique granny square designs to create a unified artwork titled “Solidarity.”
Turkey
Turkish women are actively engaged in Suzani for Peace project.
United States
Documentary Film Production with female directors.
Belarus
Curatorial strategies to bring visibility to Belarusian female artists.