Apparel July 2019 Apparel July 2019 issue | Page 136

FEATURE
THE MUSEUM FEATURES EXHIBITS
OF SPECIALLY COMMISSIONED
CONTEMPORARY EXPRESSIONS OF
TRADITIONAL EMBROIDERIES FROM
12 COMMUNITIES OF KUTCH.
MUSEUMS AND COLLECTIONS
Across the country, one comes across textile
collections that are in designated textile galleries
of museums, through private viewing sessions
that may be accessible by prior appointment, or
in museums that are wholly dedicated to textiles.
Apart from The Calico Museum of Textiles, which
is regarded as one of the world’s finest museums
for Indian textiles, Ahmedabad harbours several
other museums that display myriad textiles, one
among which is Shreyas Folk Museum, which
showcases traditional attire worn across Gujarat.
Another such space is the textile museum—
which also boasts an elaborate collection of
books related to textiles—at The House of MG, a
heritage hotel.
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or galleries may be focused on the textiles of a
particular region—such as Kutch, Gujarat, that
is especially rich in textiles. Of the latter, is the
Museum, launched by Shrujan, as a part of its
Living and Learning Design Centre (LLDC) in Bhuj,
to preserve, revitalize, and promote the glorious
craft heritage of Kutch. The Museum features
exhibits of specially commissioned contemporary
expressions of traditional embroideries from 12
communities of Kutch, encompassing a variety of
stitches and styles of the highest level of creative
and technical excellence.
Some museums focus on a particular textile
or technique. For instance, Anokhi Museum of
Hand Printing in Jaipur dedicates itself to the
collection, preservation, and interpretation of
the block-printed cloth. Set in an old haveli, the
charming museum displays a range of exhibits—
from tools used for block-printing and information
on natural and chemical dyes to historic and
contemporary block-printed textiles and garments
that convey the skill of artisans; it is also home to
a live demonstration of some popular crafts. The
patterning of a block-printed garment, traditionally
worn by women of certain communities, reflects
the socio-cultural ethos of a particular region’s
communities and sub-communities.
While earlier generations grew up seeing family
members buy and wear fine textiles crafted
from traditional dyeing and weaving techniques,
today’s generation may not often come across
the same. For instance, in times past, young girls
in Karnataka would especially enjoy embroidering
the Chandrakala sari, a black silk sari, as the pride
of their trousseau. The beauty of an intricately
embroidered Chandrakala sari is seen at the
textile gallery of Raja Dinkar Kelkar Museum,
Pune. The sari, which is over 150 years old, has
an elaborately embroidered end panel featuring
motifs of a gopuram (entrance tower to a temple),
stars, fine mirror work, and verses (including
those related to Lord Krishna) embroidered
in Devanagari.