INDIAN CRAFTS
Traditional Craftsmanship – Skill with materials & manual dexterity in
manipulating tools
Total operation involves Emotions, mind, body and vibrant rhythm for the
coordination of crafts
Preserve certain values indispensable to mankind
Dignity + creativity symbolizes link with the past
Most splendid expressions of life in India – Hand spun & handloomed cloth
worn by men, women and children
Applique, embroidery and dyeing techniques enhance the cloth and woven
textiles :silk, cotton or woolen fabrics flourished in India
Contemporary India – household shrines handicrafted with metal, stone or
clay are fashioned by local craftsmen and artisans
These living traditions are visible in the unsurpassed beauty of Indian
handicrafts.
Endowed with a highly developed sense of clay, wood, stone, ivory and textile
traditions exist within the Indian craftsmen.
TEXTILES:
Muslin also known as Malmal – known for delicacy and fineness
Best – King’s Muslin (Malmai Khas) >> Ab-i-rawan : Running water and
Shabnam(dew)
Chief centre of production – Dhaka
PATOLA – Silk or wedding saree of Gujarat and Maharashtra design appear on
both side of the material
2 principle styles
1. Cambay Pattern – with white flowers on dark green stems
2. Pattan Pattern – with broader strips of field picture, series of elephants,
flowering shrubs, human figures and birds
BROCADE – Represent large group of textiles in which designs are produced by
the use of WARP and WEFT threads
Pure silk – Amru
Gold thread – Kimkhab: famous – varnasi
Represents most generous and ornamental fabric of India
Tanchoi Brocades – named after 3 brothers who learnt from China and
practiced in Surat. Base of this fabric – Satin woven in floral and bird motifs
Brocade - generic term used for any textile that is richly figured, especially for
those with a pattern in gold or silver
Pattern – extra weft threads of different coloured silk or zari, metallic threads
are woven into the basic fabric
Patternic technique – kadwa
Special type brocade – gyasar: secular use in Buddhist areas like Bhutan and
Ladakh
SAREE-
Classical Indian garment remained in fashion over 2000 yrs
Evolved in distinct weaving patterns
Motives reflect nature, everyday life and weaver’s creativity and his aesthetic
sensibilities
Types of Sarees - Places Famous for it
1. Paithani - paithan (Maharashtra)
2. Tanchoi silk - Varnasi
3. Pochampalli - Hyderabad
4. Chanderi - Chanderi (MP)
5. Muga silk - Sualkuchi (Assam)
6. Sambalpuri - Sambalpur
7. Jamdani - Bengal and UP
8. Baluchari - Murshidabad (W.Bengal)
TIE & DIE (Bandhani)
Chief centres of production – Rajasthan and Gujarat
Rich patterns are outlined by small dots of different colours
Designs of dancing women and animal forms are produced by knot dyeing
process – still fashion in countryside
Hunting scenes, female performing Garbha, plenty of floral and bird designs
are in the intervening spaces and borders
KALAMKARI
Painted & printed textiles of AP
Kalamkari came from brush like instrument like “Kalam”: used in medieval
period to draw pattern on fabric with natural colour.
The clothes from the former school were influenced by Persian painting and
the tenets of Islam and Kalahasthi school reproduced scenes from Hindu
mythology
The art of Kalamkari belongs to 2 distinct schools – Masulipatnam (muslim
rulers) & Srikalahasthi (Hindu temples)
APA TANI WEAVES:
Apa Tani tribe – lower Subansiri dt of Arunachal Pradesh
Home – Ziro in Apa Tani plateau located in North of Itanagar
Women – weaving and one or two portable loin loom
Traditional colours – Red, Green and Yellow obtained from leaves, roots,
creepers and the barks of trees
Cloth – use of broad stripes alternating with narrow ones
Other geometric patterns – extra weft technique
BLOCK PRINTING
Best known – Palampore and Machilipatnam bed covers: decoration
incomparable
Typical design – “Tree of Life”
Baademeri Print
Manifestation of Rajasthani folk art on textiles
Recognized by their motifs, boldness of designs and stark colours
Chief centre of production – Sindh: Hindus of Badmer are engaged in this art
EMBROIDERY:
Batik – style of painting whose claim lies in being Individualistic have the
scintillating quality of stained glass
Kantha – embroidery of Bengal> uses discarded sarees which are piled up and
quilted. Thread stitches are drawn from the old borders
Pichwais – temple cloth for temples and chariots depicting Srinath as Krishna
in blue. Background – dark and richly coloured. Nathwara is famous for it
Pattachitra – cloth painting of Orissa where whole stories are shown on a long
piece of cloth like a picture film. Earthen colours are used
Pipli Applique – pipli near Bhubneshwar is famous for his work which uses
bright coloured embroidered cloth probably originating from its traditional
use in Jagganath temple
Chikan (shawl / fabric) – Lucknow
The word “Chikan” stems from a Persian word: meaning – to raise
Brought to Awadh from Persia which flourished under the patronage of
Lucknow Nawabs
Traditionally it is embroidered onto Muslin with a white thread.
3 types of designs
1. Bhakia
2. Tepchi
3. Kamdani
Gujarat:
AARI embroidary with silk threads using a hook is a popular craft of Kutchch,
Gujarat
Motifs – dancing peacocks, human figures in dancing postures
Uttar Pradesh:
Chikan work – different assumptions and beliefs
Megasthanes – art of Chikankari (floral prints on fine Muuslin clothes) started
in east Bengal
West Bengal:
Kantha embroidary
Popular – rural women
J & K:
Jaal work
Takes months to complete thread work on one shawl, bedspread
Artisans stitch decorative motifs of birds, maple leaves and other decorative
designs
The most popular form of thread work is the chain stitch that is done on
shawls and clothes.
MANIPUR:
Unique type - uses one stitch, in deference to the weavers in the area
This is done in dark matching shade with untwisted silk thread on the border
of the phanek (A lungi or lower body wrap worn by women).
ANDHRA PRADESH:
Mathurias - tribe found only in Adilabad
inhabit the forest area and being nomadic, move from place to place looking
for agricultural work on land
BIHAR:
Kasida embroidery with geometrical patterns of Bihar resembles to the
kasuti embroidery of Mysore and is found in many different Styles.
KERALA:
Syrian embroidery, the first to find its way into Kerala, is no longer practised
here
MADHYA PRADESH:
The Banjaras of Madhya Pradesh, who are found in the districts of Malwa and
Nimar have their own distinct style of embroidery.
PUNJAB:
The art of phulkari has its origins in the early part of the 19th century, when
the odhini or head cloth was highlighted with embroidered flowers.
ORISSA:
Patta Chitra is a cloth painting of Orissa, where whole stories are shown on a
long piece of cloth
uses earthen colours
other type of embroidery works
(a) Mirror Work Embroidery (b) Sequins Embroidery
(c) Resham Embroidery (d) Kundan Embroidery
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