Apparel April 2019 Apparel April 2019 issue | Page 88

UNIQUE INITIATIVE
wooden blocks and sponge blocks, using natural
dyes and hand-stitches that mostly take the form
of running stitch. Some garments stand out as
their patterns bear no repeats.
INDIGENE: AN ODE TO CIRCULARITY
AND SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION
In the end of March 2019, ARTISANS’ held
Full Circle, a collaboration between sustainable
fashion brand Indigene and multidisciplinary artist
Sajid Wajid Shaikh that featured a ‘Walkthrough
with the Artists’ and an exhibition that featured
their rendition of circular design featured
alongside some of their bestsellers from previous
collections. Indigene was founded by Ruchi
Tripathi and Jaya Bhatt, textile design graduates
from the National Institute of Fashion Technology,
New Delhi, in 2010. “They believe in working
directly with the artisan community to co-develop
designs that translate traditional handcrafting
techniques into contemporary aesthetics. They
follow an ethical supply chain to keep intact the
real meaning of ‘handmade by artisans’ that is
their commitment.” For the collaboration, Sajid
used Indigene fabrics to create an installation
that was displayed at ARTISANS’ along with the
collection of Indigene created with leftover fabric
from earlier collections, thus conveying their belief
that circularity in fashion essentially encompasses
design, production and use.
ARTISANS’ HAS ENCOURAGED
ARTISANS, ARTISTS AND
DESIGNERS TO CREATE TEXTILES
AND GARMENTS THAT SPEAK OF
THEIR TRADITIONS, INDIVIDUALITY
AND CREATIVITY.
THE STITCHING PROJECT: ROOTED IN
ETHICAL FASHION
In February 2019, ARTISANS’ held an exhibition
of the garments of The Stitching Project, a heart-
warming social enterprise based in Pushkar,
Rajasthan, and co-founded by Fiona Wright and
Praveen Nayak. “The project grew from simply
wanting to help local women make a bit of extra
income. Fiona, who is of Australian origin, is a
textile artist and teacher. She runs a stitching
workshop with a group of women, where the
emphasis is on traditional ‘make-do’ practices
and local crafts that she first encountered in
India. The women are trained at the centre and
many work from home.” Deeply rooted in ethical
fashion, their garments are rooted in handwoven
khadi that bears contemporary style hand-block
prints worked using different techniques such as
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I APPAREL I
April 2019
NETTLE TEXTILES FROM NAGALAND: A
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
From time to time, ARTISANS’ connects with
local communities to undertake projects that are
specific to local cultures, traditions and ethos. In
an ongoing project, ARTISANS’ has collaborated
with a group of Naga women spinners and
weavers from the Chakhesang tribe in Leshemi
village in Nagaland, to design and co-create
shawls and other products, which are handwoven
on narrow back-strap looms with a combination
of nettle and cotton yarns and are hand-finished.
Nettle grows wild in Nagaland, and it is foraged
and processed by hand in a labour-intensive
process to obtain yarn for weaving. The project
has given a new channel for the weavers to
create textiles for the urban market, while keeping
the patterns, a dark blue/black stripe (that is the
mark of the identity of the Chakhesang tribe)
and weave type of these textiles rooted in their
traditions. In this way, the many initiatives of
ARTISANS’ has encouraged artisans, artists
and designers to create textiles and garments
that speak of their traditions, individuality and
creativity, as may be the case, and bring these
wonderful works to textile and garment lovers
who may see them at the gallery or the store.