'Made in India' exhibition showcases craftsmanship

The rich Indian weaves are gradually gaining momentum not only on the global fashion map but also among fashionistas within the country. A rising number of designers are working with craftsmen to revive and bring the age-old weaving techniques in modern context. A showcase of how garments have been

created for centuries in the country was recently held in New Delhi during ‘Made in India’ exhibition held at Indira Gandhi National Center for the Arts. Many of India's top fashion and emerging fashion designers are struggling hard to keep the elegant design techniques and Indian weaves alive by working with many young men from local villages. These designs are then displayed on the runways in Paris and New York.

Preserving

ancient art

For the ‘Made in India’ exhibition, 23 designers spanning fashion, jewellery and interior design were asked to create pieces using ancient practices in designs with a global appeal. Organised by Be Open, which aims to preserve artisan crafts worldwide, its endevour is backed by Yelena Baturina, a Russian philanthropist and businesswoman.

Given the heritage and unique traditional art forms along with strong craftsmanship skills of the country, India was chosen as the location for the launch event. While fast fashion is the buzz word in today’s world, designers are painstakingly working with artisans based in remote towns of the country to create pieces of clothing spending several days on a single design to preserve the beauty of their cloth-making traditions, using the old skills of hand-embroidery, hand-sewing, and dying techniques.

Designers’ showcase

Such craftsmanship is not only affordable in the country, but is in demand especially keeping the Indian wedding and sari market in mind. And young designers like Rahul Mishra or Gaurav Gupta have created waves with their desi yet modern designs overseas creating a demand for traditional craft.

At the exhibition, designer duo Thukral & Tagra presented designs like an iPod stand made of an ancient-looking red clay material, that actually looks like a piece of pottery gone deliberately wrong. Gaurav Gupta, whose all-but-naked dress caused a storm when Lady Victoria Hervey wore it to the Golden Globes recently, displayed sculptures partly clad in resin dresses. And Rahul Mishra, who recently bagged the prestigious Woolmark award, created some extraordinary hand embroidered jackets and dresses decorated with a rough-looking organic wool.

Samant Chauhan, who works with hand-woven, ethical silk, and the label Pankaj & Nidhi, created a pleated dress that looks like it was made from handmade Japanese paper, while Pankaj & Nidhi designed monotone geometric dresses that were woven in descending shades of gray and in contrast to the bright, colorful creations and embroidery the brand usually presents. The work of Ashish Soni, the first Indian designer to show in New York, was a range of white clothing and cushions with embroidery using safety pins, melted pearl beads, and fabric strips.

Sunil Sethi, the Head of the Fashion Design Council of India was the chief advisor to the project, and designed some giant floor cushions for the exhibition through his company Sunil Sethi Design Alliance. A follow up exhibition is in the works for Japan in Fall 2014, and a global hand-craft design selection will be shown at Expo Milan in 2015.