Concept & Description.

For Want of a Better Word (FWBW) is a multimedia project that reflects on language, and the unique and poignant words that exist across cultures.

Every language has words that are absent from other languages, yet express social, emotional and physical concepts common across cultures. One such word is the Arabic thakla or thanklan, meaning a parent who has lost a child – similar to the English word ‘widow’ describing one who has lost a partner, this specific word for a bereaved parent is missing from the English language.

FWBW invites culturally and linguistically diverse Australians to reflect on words that are so familiar to them yet can’t be translated to the English vocabulary. The project is informed by lead artist Daniele Poidomani’s lived experience as migrant, and sense of loss when unable to express a concept in English that is easily available through a single word in his native Italian – or vice versa.

FWBW invites the CALD community of Maribyrnong to workshop a “dictionary” of “better words” expressing universal experiences of life, which have the potential to enrich the Australian vocabulary. The project involves both a participatory community art process with a small group of CALD participants to develop the artwork; as well as a public outcome delivered via social media. This is in alignment with Memetica’s standard artistic practice. Participants may be individuals but could also be families or otherwise household groups– this project could be a great opportunity for young kids to learn about the nuances of their families’ language and connect with an ethnic identity.