On November 13, 2025, at the Anarad Hığutyun Building, California College of the Arts Professor Emerita Deborah Valoma spoke in the "Ancestral Journeys: Reflections on Land and Belonging" series. In her talk titled "Following a Thread Home," she reflected on her deeply personal journey into family history and cultural memory through textiles. 

Valoma, emerita profesör at California College of the Arts, shared how a long-term interdisciplinary project led her to her ancestors’ villages in the Harput region and drew her into the hidden narratives carried in her grandmother’s textile work. She explored how these hand-made pieces, quietly stitched over years, become vessels of memory, identity, and resilience for her Armenian family, embodying stories of displacement, survival, and the intergenerational transmission of heritage. Her talk underscored that while we cannot undo past traumas, engaging with the material traces of our ancestors-even “dusty, muddy, worn” patterns-can help us acknowledge, weave together, and make present the silenced threads of history.

You can watch the complete talk from the video above.

We Welcome Your Stories

This conversation series is part of a broader dialogue about ancestral journeys and the profound connections between past and present. If you are an Armenian living abroad who has undertaken or is planning an ancestral journey, we would be honored to hear your reflections and experiences. Your stories of discovery, reunion, and belonging contribute to the collective memory that Hrant Dink spoke of - each narrative adding depth to our shared understanding of heritage and home.
We invite you to share your own journey with us. Please reach out through This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to connect and explore how your story might enrich this ongoing conversation.