Introducing the Selvedge World Fair Artisans
We are excited to introduce more of the participants in the 2021 Selvedge World Fair. The Selvedge World Fair will take place online on 31 August - 5 September, 2021.
Shaivyya Gupta, India
Shaivyya Gupta creates small batch hand block printed textiles using upcycled old wooden blocks and the pigment method of printing. Gupta works predominantly with hand block printing, a three-century-old craft that has flourished in and around Rajasthan and parts of Gujarat. She conceived her line of textiles to celebrate the reverence of colours and revive the local ‘Bazaar’ aesthetics. Her designs exist at the cusp of tradition and modernity, where the past becomes the propeller for the present. Inspirations range from Indian kitsch, local architecture and Op art–all fused together to create a distinctive language.
The textiles are versatile in terms of how the user connects with them and wants to use them. They can be designed as accessories–scarfs, wraps and sarong–and are printed on Indian Cotton Silk. The printed textiles can also be used as tableware, as a throw for the couch or even framed as wall art. They are universal, customisable and open to interpretation based on the user's whim. Gupta also creates yardages of her designs for custom orders on cotton textiles.
In addition to exhibiting at this year's Selvedge World Fair, @shaivyya will be speaking about Local Colour for Create Day on 4 September, a 24-hour programme of talks, Q&As, film screenings, artisan interviews, studio visits which will be live-streamed from New Zealand, Japan, Egypt, India, Uzbekistan, England, Mexico and Canada. All twelve 2-hour talks are included in the price of World Fair ticket.
Barefoot Ceylon, Sri Lanka
Barefoot Ceylon is a Sri Lankan brand combining the craft of weaving with the art of design. In 1964, Barbara Sansoni was invited to design for women learning to weave in a convent workshop just north of Colombo. Today, Barefoot has a band of dedicated designers providing training, designs, and raw materials. Along with the fabric, linen and furnishing, they also design and produce soft toys, wall furniture, bags, clothes and sarongs. At their core is the design and production of handwoven cloth.
Kinship stories, Lebanon
Kinship Stories brings together vintage and antique textiles, silver, and beads to create new pieces of jewellery that fuse and celebrate the culture of the Middle East. Yasmine Dabbous collects as she travels, using hand–embroidery and beading techniques to turn her finds into necklaces. Each piece is part of the rich and tumultuous narrative of the region. They echo the markets Dabbous visits, the travels she has undertaken and the precious fabrics she has found on her journeys. Kinship Stories pieces are visible emblems of a region like no other.
Learn more @kinshipstories
Una Rozentāle, Latvia
Una Rozentāle handweaves large wool shawls on an old traditional floorloom. The shawl is a traditional piece of Latvian clothing, which is still an essential part of the national costume. These shawls are worn around the shoulders. Wearing such a shawl allows one to feel a connection with the country’s national heritage. They have both an aura of antiquity and function as a modern and practical accessory. The Latvian people have very wide craft skills. Weaving is an ancient traditional skill that was relatively common in almost every country house. Only 100-150 years ago, looms were a daily tool for every housewife, helping to provide clothes for the family. Traditionally, the clothes were made of wool and linen. Flax was grown and processed on the farm itself. There was also a flock of sheep on each farm, which helped to provide the household with a sufficient amount of wool. All processing of raw materials took place at home.
Rozentāle creates her own scarf designs. The original ideas are based on traditional scarf samples in folk costume books, but she is increasingly trying to expand the boundaries of her imagination. She experiments with colours, trying to find new combinations that create unusual moods. Sometimes, an idea slowly percolates in her mind before being realised. Sometimes, she combine colours based on requests by the client. And sometimes, a clear fully-formed idea suddenly and quickly pops into her head. However, every time the experience of creating a new design is exciting and a bit unpredictable. She loves working with bright colours, often using more than ten colours in one scarf, which together form a dynamic design. With the help of colours, it is possible to make the traditional cultural heritage desirable and lovable for modern people. Her brightest scarves are also customers' favourite. In rare cases, she imitates ethnographic patterns, thus honouring traditions and authenticity.
Find out more about the colourful shawls of @una_roz
Sabahar, Ethiopia
Sabahar produces hand loomed textiles, using only natural fibres (silk, cotton, linen) and environmentally friendly dyes. They work with 100+ traditional Ethiopian weavers as well as 50+ hand spinners. Hand weaving and spinning are traditional crafts in Ethiopia, and the sector has not changed much for years. Products produced have also tended to stay remain unchanged, though there has been heightened attention by designers in the last few years.
Sabahar is trying to retain and encourage the strengths of the sector in terms of technical knowledge and design uniqueness, while ensuring high quality production and products, textures and designs which can be competitive globally to a contemporary customer. They are the only company in Ethiopia to work closely with eri silk producers found in selected rural areas of the country. They have been a pioneer in silk production and processing, as well as natural dyeing using materials from their local environment. Some of our most popular products are various designs and sizes of towels, table linens, and other household items, plus shawls, scarves and capes. They have also just started a baby collection. Learn more at @sabahar
Selvedge World Fair tickets are now on sale at link in bio and selvedge.org ('Buy Tickets' under World Fair tab). As always, the Subscriber price is £25 when you use offer code sent with your magazine.