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Urvashi
Using a variety of blocks to create just one motif, an artisan’s deft hands illuminates a simple piece of Mulberry silk with delicate floral and geometric motifs. Another crafts-person adds a layer of shimmer to it with intricate mukaish work, and yet another, collaborates with a designer to shape the fabric into feminine cuts. And…
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From House To Home In Just A Few Clicks
That yellow ikat rug you brought from Bali, those dhokra dancers a dear friend gifted to you, your mom’s set of silver frames or that planter you just bought on a whim…these are the things that make your home look like a 3D version of you. And its elements change just as you do…a new…
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A for Ajrakh: Fascinating stories about India’s block prints
You see them all around you – those complex geometric motifs in red and blue, the floral vines, the Mughal jali, the deep, earthy colors and the symmetry of patterns on fabric. But do you ever wonder who makes these block prints with exotic names like saudagari, dabu or Sanganeri? Do you know how the dyer…
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Jogi Art: A Novel Idea
Fine lines and dots fill up human, animal and inanimate forms that form unique narratives – two spiffy girls on a motorcycle, the hustle bustle of a crowd with skyscrapers in the background, a grazing cow and many more. Richly detailed and painted usually in monochrome, these paintings were made in the Jogi art form…
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A Beautiful Yarn: The last ply split braider’s journey from designer to artisan
With a lush ponytail and what seem like a dozen gold rings, Erroll Pires Nelson certainly has some serious style. At 6 feet 3 inches, he also towers over almost everyone. That persona evaporates the second he starts talking in his gentle, dulcet tone, telling the story of how he, an ex-National Institute of Design…
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Why the ‘Living Lightly: Journeys with Pastoralists’ exhibition is important
Living Lightly: Journeys with Pastoralists is a special exhibition that is on at the Indira Gandhi National Center for the Arts, New Delhi till December 18th, 2016. Curated by Sushma Iyengar, it tells the story of pastoralism through craft, art, food, poetry and music. It creates a platform for intersection and interaction for pastoral communities from…
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Re-Inventing Khadi: A New Design Direction
Breathable, rhythmic, textured, a blank canvas, versatile – just some of the words used by people who have fallen for the charms of the homegrown khadi. Not only does this handspun fabric come with an entire nation’s history behind it, it is one of the most conscious and environmentally friendly. After years of being weighed…
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Matters of the Art: In conversation with gallery owner Anchal Shinde
Shaped by her experiences and driven by her zest for art, curator and gallery owner Anchal Shinde is unapologetic about her views on the current Indian art scene. She studied commercial arts at South Delhi Polytechnic and fed her love for art with courses from the University of Melbourne and the School of Oriental and African Studies…
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Textile Trails: Museums for the Fabric Lover
A 200-year-old jacket that belonged to a Peshwa minister; a wall made of blocks used for printing; a village like space dedicated to India’s fabric traditions. These might seem like disjointed bits of information but look closer and you’ll find a thread that ties them. These are all pieces of the complicated Indian textile jigsaw. And…
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Out of the Woodwork
In a world of steel, glass and chrome, where does wood, one of the earliest materials used in a home fit in? In nearly every corner! As accents like keepsake boxes, tissue boxes and tea-lights, as serveware like trays, platters and bowls or table ware with coasters and napkin holders. Once largely relegated to the…
Storytellers of Wonder 