In Search of Wild Silk: Exploring a Village Industry in the Jungles of India

A richly immersive journey into India’s jungle wild silk industry, where tradition, ecology and craftsmanship entwine. Karen Selk takes readers deep into villages that harvest the cocoons of wild silkworms—tasar, muga, and eri—following the full arc from moth and cocoon through to spinning, weaving and finished cloth. With over 300 colour photographs, interviews, field anecdotes and intimate moments, the book reveals both the beauty and the hardship of this lesser-known silk tradition, while making a strong case for sustainability, cultural heritage, and slow fashion as bulwarks against mass production.

The narrative doesn’t shy away from complexity: environmental pressures, market challenges, social and economic dimensions are woven with the technical and aesthetic. Selk honours the artisans—not just their output—by centring voices of women silkworm rearers, spinners, weavers; by recognising the tools, ecology and ritual tied to wild silk; and by showing how preserving wild silk practices helps sustain communities and landscapes.

About the Author
Karen Selk is a textile-artist, educator, writer, and entrepreneur whose life’s work has revolved around silk. Based on more than thirty years of travel, collaboration, and field study in Asia—particularly India—Selk brings both material expertise and deep respect for the communities and ecosystems she documents. Her long engagement with sericulture makes her not simply a chronicler of wild silk, but participant and advocate in its continuation.

Publication date: 2023
Publisher: Schiffer Craft
Pages: 272
ISBN: 9780764364976