Textile Fibre Forum at Geelong Grammar School

Ali Mohammed Isha Khatri, Rajubhai and Lachhuben Raja Raja on the left of the textile piece and Raniben Ratilal Bhanani, Judy Frater and Nileshbhai on the right.

Rajubhai and Lachhuben Raja Raja

Lachhuben Raja Raja and Raniben Ratilal Bhanani

Lachhuben Raja Raja and Raniben Ratilal Bhanani

Ali Mohammed Isha Khatri demonstrating the transfer of a design onto cloth

Noel and I joined a large group of textile artists to participate in the annual workshops that are held at Geelong Grammar school each September. It was an exciting week with an amazing number of diverse workshops, exhibitions, installations and an opportunity to purchase materials from a range of traders.

Noel and I worked with some wonderful friends from the Kutch area of India.

Rajubhai and Lachhuben Raja Raja along with Raniben Ratilal Bhanani were the tutors in the stitch workshop where Noel was working.

I chose to focus on the art of knot and dot Bandhani and my tutor was Ali Mohammed Isha Khatri.

We were also fortunate to have Judy Frater, an anthropologist who has been working with the artists in Kutch for many years.

KALA RAKSHA was conceived as a new model for development through handicrafts: the interlinking of two parts, preservation of age-old traditions, and income generation via contemporary work.

The KALA RAKSHA project began in Kutch in 1991. It focused on a group of embroiderers in Sumrasar Sheikh, a village 25 km north of Bhuj. These people had migrated from Nagar Parkar in Sindh in 1972, bringing with them some fine traditional embroideries as well as their skills in suf and kharek embroidery styles With generous support from patrons of traditional arts, a permanent collection of traditional embroideries was begun. A group of twenty artisans was organized and guided in producing suf embroidered items for sale.

www.kala-raksha.org