Common Threads, Living Seas – School & Community Visits

Ocean Week St. John's

May 16th - June 30th

Avalon Peninsula, Newfoundland and Labrador

Join Fishing for Success for Common Threads, Living Seas, a unique community art project that brings together Newfoundland and Labrador youth, traditional textile arts, and our shared connection to the ocean.

Over several weeks, a large collaborative hooked rug will travel to schools and community spaces throughout the Avalon Peninsula, inviting children and youth to contribute their own stitches, stories, and creativity. Inspired by themes of ocean health, sustainable fishing, marine careers, and life by the sea, the rug will become a collective expression of Newfoundland and Labrador’s maritime heritage and future.

Textile arts are a universal language shared across cultures and generations. Through this project, students from both the Newfoundland and Labrador English School District and the Provincial Francophone School Board of Newfoundland and Labrador will have the opportunity to learn about traditional rug hooking while contributing to a lasting work of community art. Participants will even be encouraged to bring meaningful fabric scraps from home, weaving personal and family stories into the finished piece.

Following the unveiling, the rug will be formally presented to the Seafarers’ Centre in St. John’s, where it will remain on permanent display. The presentation will serve as a gift from the children of Newfoundland and Labrador to the seafarers who work, travel, and spend their lives on the sea.

Our Volunteer Artists

The project is made possible through the support of local artists, educators, community partners, and volunteers dedicated to preserving traditional arts while inspiring the next generation of ocean stewards. Our volunteer experienced rug hookers include Kimberly Orren, Kelly Jane Bruton, Jessica McGrath, Megan Hutchings, Rhodie Anne Woodland, and Lisa Sheppard.