W
Woven Souls
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Mata ni Pachedi
A hand painted textile from Gujarat, India,
with an architectural rendering of a temple at its center,
that houses the main mother goddess image.
Around this are the mythological tales about the deity.
This art was created centuries ago, by an ethnic group to overcome
the caste- entry barrier to the temple structure.
The art form today retains
it's religious content
and is practices by a very small group of people around Baroda & Ahmedabad.
Although, technically, it is similar to kalamkari work of South India-
(whose content & origin of purpose are slightly different)
the work of the Gujarat artisans is much finer & more precise.
Literally, "mata-ni-pachedi' means 'behind the mother-goddess',
which is where the canopy is set up.
Acquired from the family of an award winning mastercraftsman in Ahmedabad,
this is among the finest examples of 'kalamkari' or 'pen' work that I have seen.
This piece though recently made, embodies the perfected art of the maker's forefathers.
The colors on the second picture represent the true color.
The following link describes a Fulbright Fellow's journey
with
the craftspeople making Mata ni Pachedi
http://india.em-dash.org/2006/01/mata-ni-pachedi.html
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UNDER CONSTRUCTION....
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