The World Crafts Council and the World Crafts Council Asia Pacific present an unprecedented cross cultural exhibition celebrating the rich legacy of ikat, an age-old textile technique stretching across the continents of the world. This collection brings together an array of some of the priceless pieces of ikat, with live demonstrations by master weavers, a symposium, films, and book display. The exhibition includes over 200 ikat textiles from the Asia-Pacific, Latin America, Middle East, West Africa and Europe.
Ikat is a specialized dyeing technique applied to pattern textiles that employs a resist dyeing process similar to tie-dye, on either the warp or weft fibres prior to dyeing. It is distinctly labour intensive and known the world over for its precision and masterly craftsmanship. Ikat textiles are rich with interminable, inherent possibilities of tie-dyed patterned wraps and wefts that may be split and rearranged on the loom by hand. These painstakingly hand woven fabrics have a more dynamic surface qualities than those achieved in power loom weaving. They are distinctive in look, and valued over other resist techniques of ornamental textiles such as Shibori, Batik, Mud resist and Leheria.
Ikat have often been recognised as the symbols of status, wealth and prestige. Perhaps because of the time and high level of skill required to make ikat, some traditions believed the cloth to be imbued with magical characteristics. Through wide usage, the word ikat has become the generic term of reference for these textiles in the West, regardless of their geographic origin.
The Indonesian word ikat is obtained from the verb mengikat, meaning ‘to bind, tie or wind around’. While the most complex double ikat exists only in Asia – Bali, Japan and India – the practice of ikat weaving is profuse among many cultures from across the globe. Very likely it is one of the oldest forms of textile decoration.
Read the rest of Rosie Gibson's article in the latest issue of Selvedge –
Southern.
Ties That Bind- World Ikat Textiles...
Catch it before it closes on 26 June
www.soas.ac.uk
