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Tuesday 2 July 2024, In-person and Online Talk with Monisha Ahmed, The Fabric of Life - Textiles from the Ladakh Himalayas
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Tuesday 2 July 2024 at 18:00 BST (British Summer Time, London, UK)
In-person and online event at The Art Workers' Guild, 6 Queen Square, London WC1N 3AT
Please note: this is a hybrid event that will be in-person as well as live-streamed on Zoom. A Zoom link will be sent to ticket holders a week before the event. The event will be recorded and the recording sent to ticket holders after the event.
Monisha Ahmed is an independent researcher whose work focuses on art practices and material culture in Ladakh. Her doctoral degree from Oxford University developed into the book Living fabric – Weaving among the Nomads of Ladakh Himalaya (Orchid Press, 2002), and received the Textile Society of America’s R L Shep award in 2003 for best book in the field of ethnic textile studies. Since then she has co-edited Ladakh – Culture at the Crossroads (Marg Publications, 2005), collaborated on Pashmina – The Kashmir Shawl and Beyond (Marg Publications 2009 and 2017), and published several articles on textile arts of Ladakh, as well as other parts of the Himalayan World, including four in The Encyclopedia of World Dress and Fashion (Berg Publishers, 2010). She has also written on textiles in other areas of India including a chapter for The Arts and Interiors of Rashtrapati Bhavan – Lutyens and Beyond (Rashtrapati Bhavan, 2016), and the catalogue Woven Treasures – Textiles from the Jasleen Dhamija Collection (Saffronart, 2016). More recently she was an advisor for the Bhau Daji Lad Museum’s online exhibit We wear Culture for the Google Cultural Institute. Formerly Associate Editor of Marg, she is co-founder and Executive Director of the Ladakh Arts and Media Organisation (LAMO), Leh.
Situated in the high reaches of the Himalayan and Karakoram ranges, Ladakh has a highly diverse textile tradition that reflects its physical, socio-economic and cultural environment. The range of fabrics used extends from elaborately patterned prestige garments made from trade textiles to simple homespun materials produced from locally available resources of wool and pashmina. While serving as apparel or as containers and coverings, they also speak about life in the region as well as fulfilling religious and social obligations. Presented as offerings or obligatory gifts, textiles are also indicators of rank and status as well as markers of sacred and secular space.
Weaving is practiced throughout the region, though differences exist between agricultural and nomadic communities. The craft has strong symbolic representations and interpretations that resonate throughout Ladakhi life. The act of weaving and the fabric created, engage with Ladakhi society and beyond the making of cloth, they uphold values and determine gender roles. Weaving is closely connected to birth and life; the making of cloth is seen as an expression of a family network. Such strong associations resonate within the craft and have implications on its continuity.
This presentation will look at the history of fibres and textiles in Ladakh, their use and transformation over time. It will discuss traditional weaving systems in Ladakh, and their symbolic representations and interpretations in Ladakhi life. It will examine changes to the tradition first by the Moravian Missionaries and government Handicraft Centres, and more recently by Ladakhi fashion designers. Eventually looking at whether or not the transformations in the making and use of textiles in Ladakh have impacted on the crafts engagement with Ladakhi life, and if the next generation of Ladakhis will continue to recognise this importance.
Cancellation policy
All orders for talks are non-refundable.
In-person and online event at The Art Workers' Guild, 6 Queen Square, London WC1N 3AT
Please note: this is a hybrid event that will be in-person as well as live-streamed on Zoom. A Zoom link will be sent to ticket holders a week before the event. The event will be recorded and the recording sent to ticket holders after the event.
Monisha Ahmed is an independent researcher whose work focuses on art practices and material culture in Ladakh. Her doctoral degree from Oxford University developed into the book Living fabric – Weaving among the Nomads of Ladakh Himalaya (Orchid Press, 2002), and received the Textile Society of America’s R L Shep award in 2003 for best book in the field of ethnic textile studies. Since then she has co-edited Ladakh – Culture at the Crossroads (Marg Publications, 2005), collaborated on Pashmina – The Kashmir Shawl and Beyond (Marg Publications 2009 and 2017), and published several articles on textile arts of Ladakh, as well as other parts of the Himalayan World, including four in The Encyclopedia of World Dress and Fashion (Berg Publishers, 2010). She has also written on textiles in other areas of India including a chapter for The Arts and Interiors of Rashtrapati Bhavan – Lutyens and Beyond (Rashtrapati Bhavan, 2016), and the catalogue Woven Treasures – Textiles from the Jasleen Dhamija Collection (Saffronart, 2016). More recently she was an advisor for the Bhau Daji Lad Museum’s online exhibit We wear Culture for the Google Cultural Institute. Formerly Associate Editor of Marg, she is co-founder and Executive Director of the Ladakh Arts and Media Organisation (LAMO), Leh.
Situated in the high reaches of the Himalayan and Karakoram ranges, Ladakh has a highly diverse textile tradition that reflects its physical, socio-economic and cultural environment. The range of fabrics used extends from elaborately patterned prestige garments made from trade textiles to simple homespun materials produced from locally available resources of wool and pashmina. While serving as apparel or as containers and coverings, they also speak about life in the region as well as fulfilling religious and social obligations. Presented as offerings or obligatory gifts, textiles are also indicators of rank and status as well as markers of sacred and secular space.
Weaving is practiced throughout the region, though differences exist between agricultural and nomadic communities. The craft has strong symbolic representations and interpretations that resonate throughout Ladakhi life. The act of weaving and the fabric created, engage with Ladakhi society and beyond the making of cloth, they uphold values and determine gender roles. Weaving is closely connected to birth and life; the making of cloth is seen as an expression of a family network. Such strong associations resonate within the craft and have implications on its continuity.
This presentation will look at the history of fibres and textiles in Ladakh, their use and transformation over time. It will discuss traditional weaving systems in Ladakh, and their symbolic representations and interpretations in Ladakhi life. It will examine changes to the tradition first by the Moravian Missionaries and government Handicraft Centres, and more recently by Ladakhi fashion designers. Eventually looking at whether or not the transformations in the making and use of textiles in Ladakh have impacted on the crafts engagement with Ladakhi life, and if the next generation of Ladakhis will continue to recognise this importance.
Cancellation policy
All orders for talks are non-refundable.
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