This was a course which made us go in depth with the origin of silk and textiles and how modernisation is affecting it.Not only did we look at the biological aspect of how silkworms are produced but other economic, social changes faced by the weavers after production.We were taken to a weavers colony in Devanahalli in Bangalore where the entire process was shown to us.
Bangalore, ever since its foundation, was the hub of weavers and craftsmen inclined to textiles. It prospered well and made good trade with various places within India.
Right after the software boom, Bangalore started facing its initial stages of reduction in investment of weavers and all things related. With the introduction of power looms, it began to get worse as the yield was more though the quality was less.
Right after the software boom, Bangalore started facing its initial stages of reduction in investment of weavers and all things related. With the introduction of power looms, it began to get worse as the yield was more though the quality was less.
We were given a complete introduction to the concept of “jacquard looms” and the process of making the ever enchanting material-‘silk’
We saw the most painful part yet,the boiling of the cocoons.
Boiling of the cocoons.
We got to see both the powerloom and the handloom,which had quite a lot of differences,not only in the way the silk is produced but the people who were involved in it too.
hand loom
Power loom
Our assignment then was to create and present any form of whatever we had experienced on our research and journey.
The five of us in the group, decided to make an installation reflecting what we saw, we wanted the viewer to be able to feel what we felt and what people in that job feel every day.
We decided to bring in moths, which are flying freely after they have escaped a terrible death. The moths are weaving their lives too, which is shown by the spindles underneath and the threads in a certain pattern. It also has another meaning of the loom industry decreasing in value every day because of our machines and greed of money.
The background shows boiling water and the quote ‘Watching Water Boil’,which is to depict the moths still getting boiled by the water,since it was unanimously considered cruel and inhuman.This was projected on to the installation,later on it shows a pan actually boiling water.
The sound of water boiling is present throughout the entire time any viewer sees it,to really imagine how it would be to work like this everyday.
We decided to bring in moths, which are flying freely after they have escaped a terrible death. The moths are weaving their lives too, which is shown by the spindles underneath and the threads in a certain pattern. It also has another meaning of the loom industry decreasing in value every day because of our machines and greed of money.
The background shows boiling water and the quote ‘Watching Water Boil’,which is to depict the moths still getting boiled by the water,since it was unanimously considered cruel and inhuman.This was projected on to the installation,later on it shows a pan actually boiling water.
The sound of water boiling is present throughout the entire time any viewer sees it,to really imagine how it would be to work like this everyday.
Freed Moths
I further wanted to make an installation related to stories and myths of Silk,which is still a work in progress.
