East London Textile Arts (ELTA) is an independent arts organisation based in East London. We work with people of all faiths and ethnicities, making community textiles to exhibit and illustrate books, papers and printed fabrics. Our projects are run by local people and aim to create textiles that reflect the cultural diversity of the area. We have no paid staff. Our projects focus on social, health and environmental issues, as well as any others affecting

local communities.

 

As a small project-organisation reliant on our own fundraising, we work in partnership with Newham Libraries, social and health care providers and other organisations on a more temporary basis. We have a speciality of working with adults with Learning disabilities and have recently begun a partnership with Blue Apple Theatre based in Winchester.

​

We believe in the long term development of creative abilities : our classes aim at building creative skills in communities over months and years. We tailor our work to all interests, abilities and cultures so that each individual can develop their own talents.

​

Training for project workers and volunteers is a key element of our work, and takes place  within our projects. Learning how to teach crafts and to fundraise, and acquiring community skills, are all vital skills to have today to ensure the survival of creativity within communities.

​

We have made a few films, including on migration and the Tale of the Four Friends by Kalila wa Dimna. These can be seen on you-tube here

and our film about diabetes is here

​