Block Prints, Fashion and Me

The Traditional arts and crafts of our rich country have always triggered my design senses. Block printing being my favorite. Block printing is the oldest form of printing in India. It is a form of dying and coloring fabric using wooden blocks. It does not surprise me as India is one of the largest manufacturers and exporters of block printed fabrics in the world. Block printing craftsmen use wooden or metal blocks to create beautiful designs.
In Gujarat, this form of hand printing has been practiced in the Paithapur families. They make intricate blocks, and print their textiles using the mud resist-printing method. These prints are called Sodagiri  prints.
Dhamadka village in Gujarat is known for a block printed fabric called Ajrakh. The popular designs of block printing in this village are geometric. In Kutch, the popular patterns are black and red designs of birds, animals, and dancing girls. The saris of Ahmedabad and Baroda have large mango patterns against a red or blue background.
In Rajasthan Sanganer is famous for its Calico printed bed covers, quilts and saris. In Calico printing, the outlines are first printed, and then the color is filled in. Bold patterns and colors are popular. They are printed repeatedly in diagonal rows. Doo Rookhi printing is also famous here. In this technique, artists print on both sides of the cloth.
Block printing is also done in Punjab, Bengal and Andhra Pradesh in India.

My first experience with block prints was in Gujrat. Even in Gujrat each place, each city added its own beauty in the craft. The cities like Ahmedabad added new colours  and abstract compositions while Kutch maintained the strong heritage. I was ever since curious to develop my own prints and compositions. It was a pleasure to seen my own prints and compositions adding beauty to the plain fabrics.

Vibrant Gujarat (As rightly known)

India has rich heritage, richness being clearly seen in the cultures, dialects, colors, crafts, architecture and tastes. It is said that the language here changes every ten miles, so does the taste of water and if we carefully observe Indian culture, the same applies for the traditional crafts, the crafts which are awe inspiring, the crafts which speaks for themselves, the crafts which are very colorful and the crafts which are on the verge of extinction.
Studying for four years in NIFT Gujarat, I have naturally developed a taste for the rich crafts of India. Gujarat, a land rich in numerous crafts with  KUTCH rightly called as the capital of crafts.Those four years helped me explore maximum embroideries, prints and other surface ornamentation techniques. I was learning craft, not just through the texts but meeting the artisans themselves, sitting with them, getting involved in their daily activities and by actually becoming one of them, this undoubtedly was a enriching and very knowledgeable experience.
Now when I teach at JIMS School of Design and this semester, I am allotted Indian Embroideries as a subject, it reminds me of the rich experience that Gujarat gave me. Right from the Calico Museum to working with the various NGO's in the state and simply the vibrant streets shops in Gujarat.
Most importantly it reminds me of my rich Craft documentation experience in KUTCH.  It has been my stay in this state that helped me understand both my strength and my passion is Indian crafts and textiles. By the end of my stay I was perfectly sure that it is Crafts that i want to work with and it is craft that i understand the most.

My Alma Mater

I remember very vividly as a kid I had a book named 'What will i Be? ' It had small cartoon like illustrations of various professions and professionals. My fascination for Fashion designers and fashion design started with this little book. I think  I was barely six years old. I simply loved the concept of having the power to design and make my own clothes. I never realized when this fascination turned into a Dream and when this dream turned into a my only Reason to live life. Everyone who knew me as a kid knew that I wanted to be a Fashion Designer. Some admired, some laughed while some only listened my stories of a fashion designer. As I was growing up my fascination grew stronger. When I was in 7 grade someone told me about NIFT. It was the only institute in India which offered a course in Fashion Design. I felt that my life was set. I started collecting all possible information about fashion design and NIFT. I think till date NIFT definitely must have been the most uttered word by me.The only source that time were newspapers and magazines. As I has advertised so much about fashion design since a kid  my family, friends, relatives, my parents friends, my uncles friends, their friends etc in short all possible people shared every small piece of information found with me. In a matter of time it was not just me but everyone around me, knew everything about NIFT. Most of my relatives and friends had already assured themselves as my future clients. I still remember that day when I finally got through NIFT. My first step in Gandhinagar NIFT campus. Those four years of my life were the most beautiful days in my life. NIFT gave me almost everything. It trained me not just as a designer but as human being. Every moment was a learning experience for me. I unexpectedly also found my life partner in NIFT. Most importantly it taught me that Dreams turn into Reality. Ever given a chance I would love to RELIVE these four beautiful years of my life.

A Start

Well,

Me and Sachin had always had Long Discussions of having something of our own and most importantly sharing it. This Blog is just a Small start to lots of other Big things that we plan to Start and Share.