Jantar Mantar
Wednesday, 31 March 2010
Tuesday, 30 March 2010
The Micro Embroidered World of Naqsh
Yesterday on a little shopping outing to the cool and elite complex, Santushti,Delhi. Which by all appearances seems to be based in what used to be an airforce barracks, the shops are all in small huts which must have been 'dorms' in their previous lives. The area is beautifully landscaped with gardens and lawns which give a 1930's home counties atmosphere. In this complex I had the great fortune to come across the Naqsh, and meet the owner Nazir Wani and his son and daughter Suhail and Sumiya. As we got talking, Suhail began to tell me of their family buisiness, and the intricate embroideries they have been doing for 100's of years. Originating in Iran but then moving on to Cashmere. Then he bought out these samples. They are the families sample books and you can make an order for the finest embroidered pashmina you can imagine. The stitches are so fine that you can hardly see them all with the naked eye.
These are the real thing. The family has the yarns spun and fabrics woven and then can be embroidered, Nazir himself was a master embroiderer, but find now he does not have a steady enough hand. I saw one shawl that he had taken three and a half years to embroider. The work is simply breath taking!
One of these pashminas with an embroidered border will cost around £1000 and take about a year to make as the stitcher can only give the required concentration for about an hour a day.
Naqsh have also been putting their efforts into preserving the Kashmir crewel work and have a surprising contemporary line with pieces base on artist like Klimt and Miro.
Contact Nazir Wani
Monday, 29 March 2010
Long Time - No Blog
As you may have noticed, it's been quite a while since my last post on here.
But I have an excuse - honest!
Stay tuned to see what I've been up to. And in the meanwhile - here's a visual amuse-bouche to whet your appetite...
Tuesday, 23 March 2010
Sunday, 21 March 2010
A Visit to the Ghandhi Ashram
On my fourth visit to Ahmedabad I finally found time to spend a quiet morning visiting Ghandhis' Ashram on the banks of the Sabarmati river, just out side the city. It is the community that Ghandhi founded shortly after his return from South Africa, and presents now 2 exhibitions one in words one in pictures that give a good insight to the life of this great man.
for more information on the Gandhi Ashram
Thursday, 18 March 2010
A Nomadic Camel Train
These nomades are making their annual journey from the Gujerati region of Kutch to the more fertile lands of the south. We spotted them casually wandering down the main A road from Ahmedabad to Kutch, with their huge heard of sheep, as if out for a Sunday stroll.
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