CLARIFYING THE VISION
This platform was started as a means to document my travels through India with textiles. That journey has come to an end, but the fire that it lit in my imagination is burning stronger than ever.
Reflecting on my experiences and interactions with artisans, suppliers, retailers, educators, facilitators and many more engaged in the production of handcraft textiles, one major theme rose out above the rest.
Despite the multitudinous odds, I have found that there are many artisans producing beautiful, high quality, handcrafted textiles which have a lower impact on the environment and provide a higher quality of life for the artisans than the quotidian textile market, while simultaneously empowering communities and contributing to rural development in a sustainable way.
On the other end, I have witnessed that there is a growing desire, particularly in the luxury market for goods which demand the same: a story behind the product, which nurtures a closer connection to both the natural environment and the makers. In India this tradition is very strong, relatively visible and to an extent there are structures in place to support it. Returning to Africa I am finding that here too there is a rich textile tradition and many contemporary producers in the field but with much less support and visibility. This is where I have decided to position myself and while the process will be slow, growing organically where the cracks in time appear, this is the vision:
Through the sharing of my research, experiences and philosophical ponderings I aim to use this space as a platform, a directory of sorts, to promote producers and traditions from within the African continent in an attempt to create visibility for an alternative market of suppliers, retailers and consumers of local, handcrafted textiles.
Please join me on this journey under which the sharing of resources and highlighting of local production will be the central foundation.
Image credits
The Featured Image Pictures a beautiful handloom weave of unknown origin hanging in the window of Merchant on Long – ‘Africa’s first concept store’ on Cape Town’s iconic Long Street, South Africa.