| The
celebration of the 20th anniversary of
THE BOTHWELL SPINin's
LONGEST THREAD
CONTEST
has spawned the <FRIENDSHIPthread>
Ball in 2006. |
| |
| WORLD
spinOUT
DAY 2006 in the Southern Hemisphere
is the 20th anniversary of the inauguration
of The Bothwell SPINin's Longest
Thread Contest. This is an international contest
inaugurated in 1986 for the 'Longest threads
of raw wool, hand spun and plied to weigh 10
grams'. The record for the longest thread
is recognised by The Guinness Book of Records
and over the 20 years there have been some very
impressive achievements recorded. |
| |
| Through
The Longest Thread Contest
spinners throughout the world have not only
become linked in friendship but greater understandings
between the participants have developed over
the two decades the contest has been run. Also,
many traditions and conventions have grown up
around this challenge. A lot of the threads
entered have subsequently been contributed to
what has become known around the world as Bothwell's
<FRIENDSHIPthread> |
| |
| One
tradition has been for these threads to be combined
as a material stock used to make an item for
sale at the next SPINin. Customarily
this item has been sold with the proceeds going
to support a community project. |
| |
| For
the 20th anniversary of The Longest Thread Contest
the <FRIENDSHIPthread> component
of the contest has evolved into a project where
threads from all round the world will be added
in metre lengths to a ball to symbolically acknowledge
and spread friendship while initiating new friendships
and alliances around the world. |
| |
| The
aim is to use The Bothwell SPINin
as an opportunity to initiate a symbolic action
that celebrates old friendships while initiating
new ones and building opportunities for all
kinds of new alliances around the world |
| |
| The
documentation of the accumulation of threads
and friendships is an important part of the
project given that Bothwell's SPINin has developed
a culture that is conducive to the friendly
exchange of ideas among people from unlikely
places. |
| |
| The
2007 Bothwell SPINin will be marketed
around this project in concert with other strategies,
and together with them, it offers new opportunities
to spread the word about The SPINin
in Tasmania, interstate and beyond. |
| |
| The
documentation of the project will not only add
yet another 'thread' to The Bothwell
SPINin story but it will also
provide another layer to the ongoing documentation
of The Bothwell SPINin. WORLD
spinOUT DAY 2006 –
Southern Hemisphere, March 4, will be
the launch day for the project. The launch will
be in Bothwell and it will mark the beginning
of the marketing countdown for The Bothwell
SPINin 2007. |
| |
| It
is anticipated that there will be <FRIENDSHIPthread>
Days – events, gatherings etc. –
between March 4 2006 and March 4 2007 in Tasmania
and elsewhere to promote the project and simultaneously
The Bothwell SPINin story |
| |
| People
from all over are being asked to send a metre
of thread – thread of any kind, animal
fibre, vegetable fibre, fibres derived from
a mineral source, recycled threads, etc.
– and have their threads added to the
growing ball of <FRIENDSHIPthread>
at public gatherings, meetings etc. |
| |
| Sponsorship
and funding for the documentation of the project
will be sought, as will sponsorships for people
spinning thread destined for the ball. |
| |
| Plans
are afoot to use the project to generate a SPINin
<FRIENDSHIPfund>: |
|
•
|
A
fund to support disadvantaged 'textile
families' internationally and especially
those that depend on textile production
for a livelihood; |
|
•
|
A
fund that is identified with Bothwell
and The Bothwell SPINin 2007; and |
|
•
|
A
fund hat is administered by a credible
international agency and one that is able
to meet objectives that will be developed
and discussed during the life of the project. |
|
|
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