Process: To perform a series of mechanical and chemical operations in order to preserve.

Much is known about a nation, its people, their culture and the tale of their heritage from the thread that weaves their stories together, stories that must be preserved through the time. Process by Studio Medium, presented by Artisans gallery, aims to protect and preserve India’s various artisanal craft, while also showcasing collection of saris, home textiles and textile art.

The artist, Riddhi Jain from NID Ahmedabad, believes in amalgamating crafts and design to create everyday art. She started her studio, Medium, in 2016 and is based out of New Delhi. In collaboration with Studio ex-forma, an interdisciplinary design studio based between Bombay and London, this collection aims to expose the viewers to the process that goes into creating a final piece of work. The actions, both mechanical and chemical, that are part of these stages such as clamping the fabrics for dyeing, adding the fixers for pigmentation etc. have been documented and portrayed by the innovative use of resin blocks. “Objects from the process itself have been cast into the resin blocks, hence ‘preserving’ not only the journey of creation but also the beauty of it” Riddhi tells us.

Celebrating the imperfection of textile and the raw process of handmade creation, the exhibit also has an element of upcycling called the Re-Collection. “Re- is an attempt to create newness out of discarded threads and yarns that are used to dye the fabrics to create patterns ( which come out of techniques like bandhani and itajime shibori). The textiles that have been created out of waste contribute to the idea of sustainability in the most organic way” Riddhi explains.

Lastly, Process’s exhibit is also home to The JamBan Journals. A playful amalgamation of territories & traditions, this collection of contemporary sarees is Medium’s experimentation with Bengal’s extra weft weaving (Jamdani) delicately syncing with Gujarat’s indigenous tie-dye techniques (Bandhani). These sarees are woven in silk and chanderi. All these fabrics are also available for sale at the gallery itself.

The exhibit can be viewed at the Artisans Gallery on the 18th and 19th of August, between 11am to 7pm