La vie en rose

Hold me close and hold me fast
The magic spell you cast
This is la vie en rose
When you kiss me, Heaven sighs
And though I close my eyes
I see la vie en rose

When you press me to your heart
I’m in a world apart
A world where roses bloom

And when you speak
Angels sing from above
Every day words
Seem to turn into love songs
Give your heart and soul to me
And life will always be
La vie en rose

I thought that love was just a word
They sang about in songs I heard
It took your kisses to reveal
That I was wrong, and love is real

Hold me close and hold me fast
The magic spell you cast
This is la vie en rose

When you kiss me, heaven sighs
And though I close my eyes
I see la vie en rose
When you press me to your heart
I’m in a world apart
A world where roses bloom

And when you speak
Angels sing from above
Every day words
Seem to turn into love songs
Give your heart and soul to me
And life will always be
La vie en rose, Edith Piaf

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Afghanistan and Love
Love does exist in Afghanistan, tales and songs prove it! Reality in the villages in the countryside is no fairy tale; above all, what counts is the connection among the family clans. It is the Mothers’ task to find partners for their children, a choice that is discussed at length. When the mother’s decision is made – with the father’s approval – the youngsters are asked if they accept this marriage. As they are aware of the dire consequences of saying no, it is impossible for them to reject the decision. Parents are certain to know their children well enough to be able to choose suitable partners for them. Thus, married life begins and may well be hard for the young wife. However, frequently couples get to know each other and may learn to value and love each other. Even though this is obviously not love at first sight, it can develop into a happy love, deepening with time.

Love and the Heart-Motif

The heart is the international symbol of love. In Afghanistan this symbolism stems from Persian tradition. The significance of the heart as centre and seat of feelings is, however, only rarely recognised by women in the countryside. When I visited the women to order heart-formed embroideries and handed out templates, many of them used theirs upside down. Nevertheless, most of the women produced motifs more or less connected with the topic of love. In Afghanistan, presenting this topic is a precarious matter because it is something not spoken about.

Now about the participants who produced a work about the topic of love, one that was supposed to contain at least a touch of rose. An Afghan woman’s embroidered hearts, the nucleus of her creativity, has been integrated here.

Commentaries

My textile art is based on a collection of old textiles or pieces of clothing containing traces of former dressmakers or embroiderers. I have chosen this cloth for its rose path; Aslia’s heart has found its place here, as well as my yarn drawings and Aragon’s beautiful poem “We’ll sleep together” from “Crazy About Elsa”. (Claire Gravrand)

I have inserted and mixed two texts:

+ Edith Piaf’s chancon (but it is not very legible)

I have chosen a printed piece of cloth with the topics music and “rose”, for a touch of rose. The writing: a metallic thread (fuchsia/magenta) to convey the impression of sequins from showbiz, and on the other hand

+ Audrey Hepburn’s text “I believe in pink”, which represents my philosophy, if not my credo, of single-coloured pink fabrics. They are dyed in blended colours to emphasise the contrast against the printed piece. The writing was done with a single-coloured, somewhat stronger thread of size 28.

(Chantal Baquin)