CONTENTS

INDULGE textiles to buy, collect or simply admire 48 KEEPING BODY AND SOUL TOGETHER A rare collection of Chinese Ge Ba photography by Mark Eden Schooley, art direction by Nelson Sepulveda, text by Sue Marks

GLOBAL textiles from around the world 26 CUT FROM THE SAME CLOTH An atlas of Indian textiles text by Brinda Gill, illustrated by Jenny Bower 56 BLOCKING AND TACKLING Mhairi Muncaster explores block carving in Gujarat 66 MAGIC CARPETS Khursheed Dinshaw visits a carpet-weaving home in Kashmir

ANECDOTE textiles that touch our lives 14 PINK ELEPHANTS Sarah Jane Downing admires Asia's best dressed elephants photography of the Jaipur Elephant Festival by Charles Fréger 44 SHELTER FROM THE STORM Resilience in International Slum Blue text by Sophie Vent, photography by Deidi Von Schaewen 54 PRESERVATION ORDER A glimpse into how India’s ancient crafts are thriving today text by Elizabeth Ashard, illustration by Megan Griffiths 96 SWATCH Favourite Fabric no 37: Jamdani text by Sarah Jane Downing, illustrated by Georgina McAusland

ATTIRE critical reporting of fashion trends 22 SWINGING SIXTIES REVIVAL Mary Katrantzou experiments with nostalgic prints and silhouettes text by Kate Cavendish, photography by Erik Madigan Heck 34 THE WHOLE NINE YARDS Reclaiming the sari text by Skye Arundhati Thomas and Amrita Dasgupta, illustrated by Georgina McAusland 38 FORBIDDEN GARDEN Aneeth Arora’s uplifting ethics text by Divia Patel, photography by Sara Kerens 58 BLUE-EYED BOY Maku’s downright devotion to indigo by Amanda Oliver

INDUSTRY from craft to commerce 30 TAKE ME TO THE RIVER Indian Roots, International Expression by Brinda Gill 60 PARADISE LOST Injiri brings Indian design back down to earth photography by Mark Eden Schooley, styling by Nelson Sepulveda

COHABIT stunning interiors beautifully photographed 72 A LIFE IN OBJECTS Emery Walker’s home at No. 7 Hammersmith Terrace text by Jo Eaton

Mary Katrantzou experiments with nostalgic prints and silhouettes SWINGING SIXTIES REVIVAL

If resort collections are meant for traveling, this summer Mary Katrantzou’s woman will take a journey back to the future. Looking to the mod daisies and shift dresses of sixties London, and the cheerful primary colours and voluminous silhouettes that recall the eighties, Katrantzou fashions a collection that is at once nostalgic and visionary, playful and always sophisticated.

Born in Greece and trained both in architecture at the Rhode Island School of Design and in fashion at Central St. Martins, Katrantzou made her mark with her signature trompe l’oeil images and digital floral prints. In this collection she does not disappoint, culling motifs from vintage scarves and neckties. She also pushes the concept of ‘image’ to a new dimension; instead of previewing her looks on the runway, Katrantzou released photographs of them once the clothes arrived in the shops, so that her collection doesn’t pre-sell out.

Although Katrantzou’s resulting images bring to mind Patrick Nagel’s early 1980s new wave fashion illustrations, with strong lips, colour-block style and geometric backgrounds, her designs go beyond a faithful homage; indeed, she layers inspiration to create her unique looks. Perhaps in a nod to Mary Quant, for instance, Katrantzou evokes mod style by scattering daisies on shapes with a flare, like her red wool Mason coat. But she also references her own floral history, appliquéing the guipure lace daisies on the crisp white collar, side-slit pockets and hem. Katrantzou shows the coat fitted smartly over a white cotton blouse, embellished with the same guipure daisies on collar and cuffs. The effect, a double floral collar and cuffs peeking out from under bracelet sleeves, suggests neatly planted rows of blossoms.

Katrantzou cultivates this garden in her Bailey semi-sheer, black silk chiffon gown, worn with a spaghetti-strap black slip underneath. Here the same lace daisies cascade down the lengths of the delicate fabric, forming rows of individual colours in back, two-tone colours in front – pink with a black centre, purple with red, green with teal. The flowers begin strong at the jewel neckline and then gradually become lost in the chiffon, peeking out from their folds as Katrantzou’s woman moves.

She also shows this dress in a white silk-blend knee-length option, which she pairs with a red fitted cardigan in virgin wool. Like the coat, this cardigan sports accents in white: a narrow placket, crisp cuffs, and a statement bejewelled collar. The colour-blocking toughens up any daintiness implied by the feminine daisies on silk, creating an appealing modern vibe.

Katrantzou sourced prints for her collection from vintage 1960s scarves and ties, such as rep stripes and animal prints including dinosaurs, flying ducks and dachshunds. Her Duritz gown, which looks like its textile has been created from neckties stitched together, is a graceful example of menswear meets womenswear: tie prints in forest green, deep gold and dusty pink form the floor-length skirt, complementary prints in bright navy, black and white shape the bodice. The maroon-and-pink rep stripes that loop the neck 4 Erik

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Her love for khadi cloth and ikat patterns, and the ease of movement in old French work shirts, has led to a creative partnership between Rajka, Susan and her grand-daughter Josephine Saunders; to develop French work shirts with ikat khadi fabrics, available at the V&A Museum shop. Susan values the fact that family-led, handmade textiles of simple design are enduring characteristics of their shirt stories.

Along with creating garments and products with specially commissioned fabrics, Rajka consciously collects left-over snippets and up-cycles them with additional handwork such as embroidery and appliqué, to create intricate products such as patchwork quilts. Rajka has been working with Christina Kim, founder of the LA-based brand dosa, for over ten years to create beautiful garments from customised, hand-crafted textiles as well as from cutting-room waste fabrics.

It’s been a long journey for Rajka, one that has seen its scope and reach widen. Samvit, Rajshree and Kartikeya’s son, now heads the business and has started building Keri, a brand with the same values as Rajka, tailored to the Indian market where many of the next generation of artisans who have worked with Rajka are happily taking up work with the studio. Giving artisans quality work and good terms has held the studio in good stead. In our technology-driven world, Rajka preserves traditional craft bringing a livelihood and pride of heritage to hundreds of artisans, showcasing the versatility and beauty of traditional Indian textile techniques. ••• Brinda Gill www.rajka.com

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