Artistic Traditions

On the old Silk Route, I found Suzanis.........

2010-01-06T11:59:00.000-08:00

Image courtesy of the Madeline Weinrib Atelier

I stumbled upon Suzanis when I was browsing through World Imports one day. Although this blog originally started out as a place where I could write about Indian and South Asian Art, Design and Architeture, I digress this time, to write about an embroidery tradition which had its origin in Uzbekistan, along the old Silk Route. And when you see these embroidered beauties, you will see why I would have an affinity for these textiles.

Although Suzanis are associated primarily with Uzbekistan, they seem to have been found all along the ancient Silk Route, from Sindh through northern Afghanistan to Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and as far west as Turkey. Embroidery was a craft that brought women together for the practical purpose of creating bedspreads and other household linen for the dowry of young girls. This was true of most ancient cultures. In Uzbekistan, the work of such embroidery began when a daughter was born and continued until her dowry was complete. In certain affluent provinces, the dowry was expected to include at least ten suzanis of varying sizes to serve different functions. Some were used as bed coverings, some as room dividers, or as prayer rugs or wrapping cloths.

The base fabric is traditionally a silk-cotton blend with a silk warp and cotton weft. (See my earlier post on Mashroo). The embroidery technique, using silk thread is done with two main types of stitches: the Basma or Bukhara couching which is like a satin stitch and can cover large areas; and the chain stitch which is done with a hook called the tambour. The base fabric is first washed with a soft 'tea wash'. The pattern is drawn on the fabric and was usually worked in panels, which were then assembled. This allowed for a division of labour on each piece. The silk threads used for embroidery are dyed with vegetable dyes - pomegranate, indigo, madder and sumac - again very similar to the dyes used in other indigenous fabric traditions (see my post on Kalamkari). The result is a piece of art with the most glorious mellowing of colours over time.
For a detailed description on this process, check out http://www.marlamallett.com/suzanis.htm
There is an excellent collection of antique suzanis on this site.

Also check out http://www.oldworldimports.net for more samples of suzanis.
Image courtesy of www.anahitagallery.com

Pat Stanton on Stanistan Designs combines vintage suzanis with beautiful furniture frames and the results are absolutely delicious. Check out her website at www.stanistandesign.com.

South Indian Bronzes

2009-03-28T06:52:00.000-07:00

Siva, as Nataraja, Lord of Dance, 12th century, Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

On a recent trip to London, I was fortunate to visit the Victoria and Albert Museum in Kensington. The original purpose of my visit to the Museum was to see the textile collection there, which is one of the most comprehensive collections in the world. (See my earlier post on the Calico Museum of Textiles which was started by the Sarabhai family with assistance from John Irwin) However, finding the exhibit on South Indian bronzes was a special treat. Here was the irony…me, a woman of South Indian origin (with Thanjavur antecedents, to be specific) who lives in the United States coming to London to see an exhibition of Bronzes from Thanjavur!

The central piece of the collection at the V & A museum is a 12^th century Shiva as Nataraja, that most quintessential of South Indian Bronze icons. The great Chola king, Raja Raja Chola was a great devotee of Lord Shiva, and commissioned the utsava murthy of Shiva as Nataraja, famous in Chidambaram. Utsava Murthys were commissioned by the kings for the ceremonial temple processions that marked regular Temple activities. To quote Kausalya Santhanam in her article ‘Unbroken Tradition’ ”Siva as Nataraja, the King of Dance assumed such breathtaking perfection that the image danced its way into the hearts of devotees then and even western connoisseurs such as sculptor Rodin 1000 years later. Representing cosmic energy, encapsulating the motion, rest and rhythm of the universe, stamping out the evil demon of ignorance, matted locks flying, foot upraised and arm flung out, the image of Nataraja embodies the consummate skill of the stapathi(artisan-sculptor) and a millennia later is still the most favourite form for the craftsman.”

The Chola kings, who ruled from their majestic capital at Thanjavur were generous patrons of the arts and architecture and contributed greatly to the rich traditions of dance (bharata natyam), temple architecture and religious iconography. It is therefore no coincidence that the traditions of Bharata Natyam are closely woven with temple traditions and Shilpa Shastra (art of sculpture). In fact, Bharata Natyam and Shilpa Shastra speak a common language of mudras and talas.

The Talamana paddathi, in the Shilpa Shastra is the strict system of rules which govern the art of religious icons with scales for both absolute and relative measurements. The units of measurement are an angulam (quite literally, a finger width) and a tala, which is made up of 12 angulams. When an icon was commissioned, the tala was measured by the length of the palm (from the wrist to the tip of the middle finger) of the shilpi (artisan) or the yajamana - the one who commissioned the project. Where tala is rhythm in dance, it is a unit of measurement in the strict Shilpa Shastra. Mudras are hand gestures, common to both Bharata Natyam and Shilpa Shastra. The adornment, clothing, the number of arms and faces, the weapons, and the posture of the image are also prescribed in strict terms. There are also further rules for the proportionate measurements of the main deity if it is supposed to be a male, or a female in relation to other images in a grouping. For instance the dwarapalakas in the Brihadeeswara temple are themselves huge, but have to be so in order to be proportionate to the massive Siva Lingam in the sanctum sanctorum.

The ancient cire perdue or lost wax process of bronze casting has been handed down unchanged through the centuries. With no physical model serving as a reference, the sthapati carves a wax model of the image using the tala measurements marked out on a coconut frond. This model is then coated with a thick layer of river sand and clay. The stapathis claim that the alluvial sand and clay of the Cauvery River are ideally suited for this purpose. The model is then dried thoroughly and heated to melt the wax. Liquid metal is poured though an opening at the base of the model. Traditionally, Panchaloham, an alloy of copper, brass, lead, silver and gold was used to symbolize the five elements. Now it has been replaced with a combination of copper, tin, brass and lead. When the hot metal is poured into the mold, the wax melts and is displaced, giving the process its name. The model is then cooled and the mould is broken to reveal the image of the deity. If needed, the image is further refined and embellished by the stapathi.

The entire process is imbued with spirituality. The stapathi starts the process by meditating on the Dhyana Shloka for each deity, which enumerates the spiritual qualities of the deity. The Lakshanas describe the physical and facial characteristics. The icons are believed to be imbued with Prana, the sacred breath of life. The process culminates when the temple priests perform special ceremonies to finally invest the metal icon with divinity with the ‘opening of the eyes’ – an awakening of the senses, as it were. It is traditionally believed that Divinity increases in the idol as it is worshipped.

The art and science of these bronze sculptures reached the peak of perfection between the 10^th and 14th centuries in the Chola kingdom in Tamil Nadu. That the stapathi) could chisel metal with such elegant symmetry and grace over a thousand years ago is a testament to the high degree of refinement and sophistication that existed in the subcontinent in that period. One can still see this art form, practiced with little variation, in the town of Swamimalai, about 30 kms from Thanjavur, the old Chola capital.

The Cleveland Museum of Art still has an excellent website dedicated to the subject of bronzes, called the 'Sensuous and the Sacred - Chola Bronzes from South India. Click here to view this website for backgroundinformation and a demonstration on the art form.

Parvati - 12th century - Sarasvati Mahal Museum, Thanjavur

Somaskanda - Shiva, Uma and Skanda - 11th century, private collection.

Krishna subduing Kaliya, 16th century, Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

Varaha (Vishnu) and Bhudevi (Lakshmi), pre-17th century, Victoria and Albert Museum, London.

Sources:

Art and Science of Chola Bronzes by Sharada Srinivasa.

Hindu Onnet.com: Unbroken Tradition by Kausalya Santhanam

Preserving our Textile Traditions: The Calico Museum of Textiles

2008-12-09T12:35:00.000-08:00

While I was writing my previous post, I started drifting back to the time when we had visited Ahmedabad in the early 80’s. The most vivid memory of the visit was a trip to see the Calico Museum of Textiles – My father had suggested that we take a trip to see the museum since we did not have much to do with ourselves during those holidays (needless to say it was before people got addicted to TV shows or video-games !!)
Gira Sarabhai, the daughter of philanthropist Ambalal Sarabhai, was a keen collector of fine old Indian textiles and had conceived establishing a Museum of Indian Textiles. In this endeavor, she collaborated with John Irwin, who was then keeper of the Indian Section of the prestigious Victoria and Albert Museum in London. It was appropriate that the museum, which was concerned with both the historical and technical study of Indian handicraft and industrial textiles, should be established in Ahmedabad, a town with a long history of fine woven, printed and embroidered textiles. By the early 50's however, the Museum started to concentrate its energy on the vast field of handicraft textiles.

The museum was like nothing I had expected. Set within the Sarabhai Retreat amid spacious lawns, the collection of old textiles was housed in two different structures: the Sarabhai-ni-Haveli, and another complex of buildings known as the Chauk. Dating back to 1930, the sprawling Haveli, with its inlaid-marble floors and spacious rooms situated within a picturesque garden, served for many years as the residence of the Sarabhai family. The Haveli now houses the vast collection of religious textiles and artifacts. The visitor is first greeted by a small reconstructed shrine to Shrinathji, before being guided to the gallery of Pichchwais and patachitras which record the stories of the Vallabh Sampradaya. The Haveli is also home to a comprehensive collection of miniatures, Jain artifacts and South Indian Bronzes. The Chauk, a complex of old buildings around a swimming pool has been transformed by facades of carved wood and mud construction to resemble typical traditional Gujarati houses. Kalamkaaris, Mughal court textiles, woven and brocaded fabrics, yarn resist-dyed textiles and tie-dyed textiles are all housed within the Chauk. Also displayed nearby are the larger pieces such as Mughal tents and carpets.

The museum is unique in the sense that it not only houses over 5 centuries of India’s rich textile heritage, it also does so in a setting that transports the visitor to another era. The design of the museum is itself beautiful as well as functional in the purpose that it serves. It is appropriate that these beautiful textiles are displayed in such an aesthetically pleasing setting. Much thought has gone into the preservation of these textiles which are therefore displayed in a strictly controlled environment. Light and humidity are carefully monitored as is the crowd at any given time. Not only is the museum important from the point of view of preserving the large collection of heritage textiles, it also serves as the leading source of reference material for surviving craftspeople. An ambitious Publications program was launched by the museum in its early days and has gained a world-wide reputation for its scholarly publications. Based on research by eminent Indian and International scholars, these publications have aimed at providing a focus and setting a standard for all who wish to see Indian textiles studied seriously from a historical as well as technical point of view.

To say that I was awestruck during my visit to the museum would be an understatement. Perhaps this was where my love of Indian textiles and design began.

Please visit the Calico Museum if you find yourselves in or around Ahmedabad.

Revival of Mashroo - A dying fabric tradition

2008-12-06T08:10:00.000-08:00

Many years ago, Calico Mills in Ahmedabad, India, used to be at the forefront of innovative textile design and manufacturing. My mother's generation used to love visiting the exclusive Calico Mills showroom in Pondy Bazaar in Chennai to check out their latest selection of sarees. My mother's loyalty probably had something to do with the fact that my father had worked at Calico Mills in Ahmedabad and we had spent some years there. At the time I was in college, my mother and I had picked up the latest that Calico Mills offered - the Mashroo saree; Calico sarees were semi-synthetic with a blend of cotton and polyester, and this particular creation was named Mashroo after the vertical striped design. I still remember mine, in vivid shades, typical of Gujarat - saffrons, reds and greens.

The original Mashroo, sadly, is a dying textile traditon. The literal meaning of the word, 'Mashroo' means 'permitted' in Arabic. Traditionally, the use of pure silk was prohibited for Muslim men and it is possible that this weave evolved as a result of weaving traditions prevalent in the Middle-East. The Mashroo is usually composed of a silk warp and a cotton weft. The ground material is therefore cotton, while the top layer is smooth and shiny - satin cotton augmented by silk. Even though historically, Mashroo was woven in all parts of India, it survives today only in Gujarat.

The most prevalent colours were orange, red and green in bold combinations of stripes. Designs also evolved to include other resist techniques such as Ikat interspersed with the stripes.

It is exciting to see that young designers in India are starting to revive such heritage textiles. Ashish, Viral and Vikrant, a trio of designers based out of Ahmedabad debuted at the Wills India Fashion Week ramp last season. Their Spring-Summer collection past September was a feast of the very Indian kalamkaris and chanderis. (See my earlier post on Kalamkari). While others toe the international fashion line, these three unearth fabrics dying a slow death. Their new collection under the label 'Virtues' will breathe new life into the wilting fabric tradition of Mashroo. “There is a lot of awareness about the organic and natural dye clothes in Japan and Europe,” says Ashish. The young designers have managed to carve out a niche for themselves in the international market with their style. After their first show, Japan’s Sun Motoyama placed an order for 46 pieces; since then they have also begun retailing from a couple of fashion houses in Kuwait.

I, for one, am waiting anxiously to make my next trip to India and revive my own love-affair with Mashroo!!

The Hindu : Metro Plus Chennai / Lifestyle : Natural norm

I love Alpana Gujral's jewelry designs......

2008-09-21T20:18:00.000-07:00

It is impossible to classify her jewelry as modern or traditional; yet what makes Alpana Gujral's jewelry designs unique is that they cater to the contemporary woman. And by her own admission, a lot of 'her' goes into every design. Alpana Gujral, the jewelry designer, and daughter of the famous artist, Satish Gujral, was trained as an Interior Designer. She designed for family and friends for a long time before turning to it as a profession.

As a designer, what fascinates her is the process of transitioning one of her designs from conception to execution. Drawing from traditional motifs, Alpana says, "It takes me about four to five months to make a piece. I conceptualize it and then it is made by one of my craftsmen in Delhi or Jaipur."
While traditional motifs, inspired by Mughal design sensibilities, consist of the heavy jewelry pieces made up of rubies, emeralds and sapphires, Alpana's new forms use many new varieties of coloured stones to develop her own signature style.

Visit her website at alpanagujral.com

Kalamkari

2008-04-29T19:06:00.000-07:00

Kalamkari refers to a method of painting with vegetable and natural dyes on cotton or silk fabric with a bamboo pen or kalam. Hence the name kalamkari which translates as pen (kalam) work (kari) in Hindi/Urdu, and was most likely derived from trade relationships between Persian and Indian merchants as early as the 10th century. Kalamkari is native to the Coromandel coast of South India. Two major styles of Kalamkari emerged around Masulipatnam (near Hyderabad) and Sri Kalahasti, also in Andhra Pradesh, While the origins of kalamkari in Sri Kalahasti are unknown, evidence from old texts indicate that the art form flourished throughout the Deccan plateau between the 13th and 19th centuries. It is possible that Sri Kalahasti also enjoyed local patronage from the Sri Kalahasteeswara temple, a prominent Shiva temple. Temples were traditionally centers for art and culture.Therefore Kalamkari from Sri Kalahasti received a largely Hindu patronage, and artists in the area continue that tradition, depicting a variety of Hindu narrative themes from the ancient epics of the Ramayana, Mahabharata, and Shiva Puranas. The Masulipatnam style evolved with the advent of Muslim rulers in the Deccan, and trade relations with the Persian Safavid Empire and brought a gradual inclusion of more intricate and delicate motifs like trees, creepers, flowers and leaves. Merchants and traders from around the world used Indian textiles, the majority of which were kalamkari, as a currency in the Spice Trade. European and East Asian markets demanded spices like nutmeg, clove, and pepper as well as aromatic woods and oils, which were available almost exclusively in parts of Southeast Asia and Indonesia. As time went on, Indian textiles were seen as luxury items in themselves, and a variety of textiles and textile-related products were sold to merchants throughout Europe, the Middle East and Asia. the Portugese called it pintado, the Dutch used the name sitz, and the British preferred chintz. The name kalamkari is used prominently today, and is synonymous with both painted and hand blockprinted textiles that incorporate natural vegetable/organically-derived dyes.

Hand painted Kalamkari art is created on cotton textile using only natural vegetable dyes. The process involves seventeen painstaking steps. The cotton fabric is immersed in a mixture of myrabalam (resin) and milk to obtain a glossy finish. Intricate designs are sketched onto the fabric by artists using burnt tamarind twigs as pens, or 'kalams'. Typical colours used are reds, blues and mustard on earth tones giving Kalamkari fabrics their distinctive look. After each step, the fabric is rinsed repeatedly in clean water and dried. The end result is a beautiful, individually produced work of art that relies on the imagination of the artisans drawing inspiration from ancient Indian mythology or in more contemporary interpretations for clothing and home furnishings.

Since the base fabric is either cotton or silk, or in more recent years, on chiffons or crepes, Kalamkari on clothing has become synonymous with ethnic chic.

Check out this stunning selection from http://www.yncimports.com/

An Artist in the Family

2008-04-28T19:59:00.001-07:00

In the year 1990, at the age of 61, my Aunt, Padma, was felled by a stroke that left her paralysed on her left side. The fact that she pulled through and retrieved sufficient motor function through seven years of rehabilitative therapy, left her convinced that there was some divine dispensation in this, and perhaps some unfinished work remained for her to complete.
She had been a painter and the only activity that was really open to her, given her physical condition, was to return to her paint brushes again.

"Flowers are the smile of the Divine", said the Mother of Pondicherry. At a time when I saw only colour and beauty in flowers, I owe it to her that she opened my eyes to their divinity." Being a devotee of the Mother from Aurobindo Ashram, it was as if Padma was called to make this the theme of a series of paintings on flowers that figure so prominently in the Indian religious ritual.

The paintings were displayed in an Exhibition in the Shrishti Gallery at Hotel Chola Sheraton, Chennai, from the 4th. to the 9th. April, 1999, under the thematic title "A Divine Thought - Flowers for Deities".

These paintings became her offering...in a sense, a garland of paintings on flowers rather than the garland itself.

Five of these paintings are reproduced here.

My inspiration comes from.........

2008-04-28T19:56:00.000-07:00

My Father, from whom I have inherited my good taste in fabrics......somehow he was the one who took us all shopping for Sarees or clothes and had an unerring instinct for what would look good, There were shopping trips to the famous Radha Silk Emporium in the heart of Mylapore, where he would pick out unusual Kanjeevarams and trips to see the amazing collection of Textiles at the Ahmedabad Textile Museum which was started by the Sarabhai family.

My Mother, who encouraged me to dress 'differently' !! For a person who came from a traditional Tam-Bram family, she was fine when I wanted to wear sleeveless cholis with my sarees or jeans or skirts as long as the 'look' was tasteful. As I grew older and moved to the USA, she and I collaborated on a collection of Tanjore paintings together. She cooked, kept house and raised two children. She wrote. She also had artistic talent, but never pursued it fully. But from her, I learnt how to search for excellence in the things I did, however mundane they were.

My maternal Aunt, Padma, a rebel, an artist, a painter, a poet....I could go on and on. She was a self-taught painter who had numerous art exhibitions all over India. Her last two exhibitions, however, were remarkable, as she worked on them after recovering from a debilitating stroke. From her I have learnt to be courageous and be persistent, how to laugh. She always encouraged me to strike out and do what I wanted to do because, as she put it, I have the 'eye' for such things.

Kausalya Aunty, my mother's childhood friend, from whom I heard countless tales of princely families, where women were cloistered behind 'purdah', even in the Hindu families. She used to have a saree shop when I was in college, where they sold Venkatgiri cottons, Kotahs, and mulls, with the most exquisite block prints. She pioneered the use of Kalamkaari on cotton sarees and made it chic among the young college crowd in Madras in those days. She went on to design the most amazing pieces of jewellery where she took old pieces and re-interpreted them in modern ways, while retaining their old-world charm. More than anyone else, she has fashioned my sensibilities towards textile arts and jewellery. And above all, I have admired her grace and strength.