nafisa during a Textile as Narrative workshop

textile as narrative

Anchal recognizes both the need for innovative solutions to tackle social inequality faced by Anchal artisans and the power of design to reorient and refresh our thinking about how to solve these inequalities. The kantha is a flexible and expressive medium: steeped in local tradition, it can be adapted to express the lives and distinct vernacular surroundings of the artisans.

In order to encourage this creative re-appropriation, Anchal created design workshops and a line of textile products called ‘Textile as Narrative’. It teaches the interpretation and translation of one’s three-dimensional surroundings into two-dimensional quilted fabric collages. The goal is to build the artisans’ confidence to express their personal identities through fabric while creating unique works of art that tell the story of their culture and surroundings.

the narrative process

The process begins with a photograph taken from the artisan’s community, often of everyday infrastructure such as water tanks and fruit stands. The image is then used by the artisan to drive the composition of the textile seen in the images above.