More special people

As the time gets closer - only 53 days for me- I would like to introduce 2 more friends from Bhuj and Hodka.
 I met Himansu in Bhuj. He had acted as translator for Chaman and Chaman and I were visiting him one evening. Over tea Himansu told me that he was going to be in Santa Fe, New Mexico this summer at the International Folk Art Fair- why don't I drive over and help them out in the booth. I laughed at the thought- distance being about 4-5 days drive .
After I got home and told Janet about the offer we began to see about the possibility. We ended up taking the train from Grand Rapids ,MI to Santa Fe. Great trip !
However the highlight was meeting up with Himansu again and the artisan he was translating for- Ramu.

Embroidery and Quilt Work
Ramu is a Meghwal who was born in the Banni region of Kutch, where quilt making and embroidery are integral to the culture. Men source and sew the cloth while women are skilled in embroidery and mirrored work.
At 12, Ramu made his first quilt for his mother to embroider. Later traveling to government-sponsored craft fairs, Ramu joined a company in Bhuj where he learned new products and improved his skills.
Ramu has now trained two of his brothers and two nephews in the work.

Such great work he does. The group will be visiting Ramu in his village of Hodka on Jan 27th.

Ramu,Janet,Russ and Himansu. The qult shown was Ramu's gift to Janet for helping him at The sales table.

Ramu and Shamji at the 'gathering of the artisans ' from all over the world.

Ramu and one of his quilts in Santa Fe. He can be proud of his work.

 Himansu at home in Bhuj

Smita - Himansu's wife with some of her stock .
Smita's business is WAMA -women's artisans' marketing agency.
Smita will be hosting a cooking demonstration and tasting in her home while we are in Bhuj.
I can hardly wait!



Did I mention only 53 more sleeps til I leave?

Take care of each other.

The weaver who started it all- Chaman Premji Vankar

Chaman is a very talented weaver from Bhujodi, India. I first met him at the Ontario Handweavers Confernce in Alliston ,Ontario in May of 2009. His weavings were a great hit to all who attended the OHS conference. He was by default my roommate. What luck ! Over the weekend we spent many hours talking about weaving and his country- often until very late in the morning. At the end of the weekend Chaman invited me to visit him. Oh sure I thought!  After much planning and support from my wife I began to plan the trip.

Chaman with his wife Remita ,their son Shamshank and daughter Linsey

What a trip it was. The final part of the time in India was to be spent with Chaman in his village and surrounding area. I travelled with Chaman on the back of his motorscooter to visit family and friends. The things I saw will be some of the sights the group who will be with me this January will experience as well.

Courtyard in Bhujodi

Chaman examines a piece of handspun and handwoven antique cloth.
Yes, you can see through it!

Court yard at Chaman's studio

One of Chaman's weavers doing inlay.

Another of Chaman's weavers working on the pit loom.

Chaman , Linsey on the cymbals and his father with a stringed instrument made from a gourd in an impromptu concert.

With only 52 days left to pack I'd better get busy.

Take care of each other.

Introducing some of the people we will meet in India in about 60 days!

Over the course of the next few postings I want to introduce you to some of the great individuals that we will be with in India. Some we will see for a short time but some will be with us all the time.

On arrival in India one of the first faces we will see will be Gaurav. His welcoming smile and warm ways will make travel with him a safe and easy thing to do.

 This is Guarav modeling one of my scarves . The colour suits him!

 It was not all work for Gaurav. Sometimes he just has to sit and wait for the group.

While we were learning techniques and tricks Gaurav picked up a few pointers as well. This was in a blockprinting  workshop in Ajakhpur at Dr Ismail Khatri's. We will be going there for an extended workshop this year.

Stay tuned and meet some more of our friends as the time gets closer.

Did I mention that I leave in 60 days. Better start packing!

Take care of each other.



Embroidery in Bhuj

I will admit I stole this entry from a great site. To see the whole site go to http://www.gaatha.com/ and click on blog.

My reason for the theft is simple. Much detail and great pictures and this is one of the workshops that the group travelling with me could be participating in while we are in Bhuj.

By the way it is only 67 days until I leave. Should I start packing now?

 

 

Kutch…Rabari Embroidery

Rabari Embroidery
Location: Hodka, Bhujodi village, Kutchh - Gujarat, India

Gujarat is famous all over the world for its embroideries and mirrorwork.  There are about 16 different types of embroideries done in the Kutch region, but the most well known one, with its chain stitches and countless mirrors, is the Rabari embroidery.

It gets its name from the Rabari community, who are a nomadic / semi-nomadic community of cattle raisers living in the western region of India, from Rajasthan to the Kutch region in Gujarat. They migrated into this region from Sindh (now in Pakistan) about 400 years ago and many of their relatives still live there. They have wonderful stories about their origin, ranging from a connection with Shiva to Rajputs going outside their territories. Rabari, or “Rahabari” means one who lives outside or “goes out of the path”.

Among the Rabaris, the communities are further sub-divided into the Garasia, Kachela, Dhebaria and Wagadia of Kutch. Many of the Rabaris live in circular huts, known as “Bhunga”. These have proven to be much resistant to earthquakes in the tremors that hit Kutch in 2001. Although a cattle rearing community, they also engage in embroidery. The men work with leather while the women embroider garments and accessories.

As the type of embroidery on the garment clearly distinguishes the person’s identity, the different communities of Rabaris can be identified from the type and placement of embroidery on their odhanis (veils for head and shoulders). For examples, the Wagadia Rabaris wear odhanis with embroidered borders while the Kachela Rabaris have designs in the centre of the odhanis.

Rabari weddings are a colourful affair as any Indian wedding, but one of its aspects requires years of preparation. It is the preparation of dowry. The girl prepares her own dowry and only after it is ready she can go to her husband’s home. It may even take two or three years to prepare the trousseau which includes the girl’s clothes, bags, bedcovers and even the decorative camel cover. All of these are embroidered by the girl, and in this way, she also learns the skills which have passed on through generations.

The men also wear embroidered clothes, the white pleated and embroidered kediyu being the most well known garment.

Rabari embroidery is characterized by chain stitches and a generous use of mirrors. The women depict the world around them, without the help of sketches or patterns. The only material used is a simple needle and thread, which they purchase from Bhuj, the nearby town.
The stark landscape of Kutchh with its thorny babool and keekar bushes is given a new dimension with colours, by the vivid imagination of Rabari women, through chainstitches decorating the surface of cloth.
Other Rabari Embroidery villages:

Dhebar Rabari~ Makhiyan, Padhdhar, Bhardoi, Mamuara, Nadapa, Raydhanpar, Varnora and Dudhai
Kachchhi Rabari~ Madhapar, Gada, Bhujodi, Sanosara, Kodki, Makhana, Bharapar, Beru, Chakar, Devpar Gadhwali, Fotdi, Momaymora, Morjar, Meghpar, Kotda, Mankuva, Nathtarkui, Nakhatrana Nana, Tunda Vandh, Vadva Kanya and Bhojrajwari Vandh

Hodka Village, Bhuj (Kachh)

Take care of each other.

One more step closer

With only 70 days til this adventure begins things are starting to ramp up. The day before yesterday I received confirmation that the group will be able to spend the better part of a day in an UNESCO award winner's workspace. I was there last year and the fascinating block print work that Dr. Khatri and his workers do in nothing short of amazing. We are very fortunate to have this opportunity and special thanks goes to Himasu Dugar for co-ordinating this part of our time in Bhuj. Hiumasu was also responsible for arranging our group to have another UNESCO award winner -Jabbar Khatri -present his work to use in a workshop format. Jabbar is a bandani [ tie and dye] expert. This technique is many tiny knots tied in patterns. We will see how far we get!
Monday the first of November will be remembered by me as a very frustrating day.
The group's train tickets were ordered in early October. The train system only releases tickets only so far in advance so after the 15thof October my Indian travel agent- Guarav from http://www.indianmoments.com/ ordered the tickets. I waited  and waited - still no e-tickets  so emails started no response. Monday, Nov 1 I sent another query and a few minutes later Gaurav called from Jaipur, India saying that they had been sent. Somewhere in cyberspace they hung. Many other tries later the tickets arrived this morning.
The ladies will all be travelling in the same A/C coach in seats that are side by side. Huge thanks to Gaurav from Indian Moments for his extra efforts.
A few more details to deal with and hopefully all surprises will be little
 ones ;-}.
Take care of each other