Identity of cloth

What does the identity off cloth depend on ?

Does it depend on the cloth itself?

Or does it depend on the way its worn ?

Or the person wearing it?

Or the way people perceive it? 

My cloth Banarasi silk sari

 

About

•Banarasi saris are saris made in Varanasi, a city which is also called "Benares." These saris are historically considered to be among the finest saris in India and are known for their gold and silver brocade or zari, fine silk and opulent embroidery, and being highly sought after. These saris are made of finely woven silk and are decorated with intricate design, and because of these engravings, these saris are relatively heavy.

•It long a saree is made Depending upon the intricacy of designs and patterns, a sari can take anywhere from 15 days to a one month and sometimes up to six months to complete.

 motifs 

• Mughal inspired designs such as intricate intertwining floral and foliate motifs (leaves), kalga and bel, a string of upright leaves called jhallar at the outer, edge of border is a characteristic of these sarees. 

features

distinctive features are Heavy gold work, Compact weaving, figures with small details, metallic visual effects, pallus, jal (a net like pattern), and mina work.These saris are an inevitable part of any Indian bride's trousseau awry)

History 

•The earliest mention of the brocade and Zari textiles of Banaras is found in the 19th century.

•With the migration of silk weavers from Gujarat during the famine of 1603, it is likely that silk brocade weaving started in Banaras in the seventeenth century and developed in excellence during the 18th and 19th century. During the Mughal period, around 14th century, weaving of brocades with intricate designs using gold and silver threads became the specialty of Banaras.

Craft dying

Over the years, the Banarasi Silk handloom industry has been incurring huge losses because of the unfair competition from mechanised units producing the 'Baranasi silk sarees' at a much faster rate and at much cheaper cost, another source of competition has been sarees made of cheaper synthetic alternatives to silk.

Varieties

•Today there are four main varieties of Banarasi sari, which includes pure silk (Katan), Organza (Kora) with Zari and silk; Georgette, and Shattir, and according to design process, they are divided into categories like, Jangla, Tanchoi, Vaskat, Cutwork, Tissue and Butidar 

The  cloth i selected

 The saree from the Toronto museum project

•A crimson red Hindu wedding Banarasi Saree. Decorated with twenty-two carat gold brocade, this saree is made of 100 % silk and was custom made around 1932. This particular Banarasi saree is designed with a floral motif – in this case the "buta" (single large flower) typical to Banaras brocades.

•This particular saree was worn by Babi’s (tmp volunteer)  mother in 1932 and made of silk fabric imported from China.

•Saree is from the Toronto project museum museum

•   This saree signifies the place richness and purity of banaras,the zari increases the  esthetic value of the saree  and also shows status and the silk shows purity

• Colour

•Red is regarded as an auspicious colour because of its symbolic meaning tied to fertility, making it a suitable colour for brides and young married women.

Story of the saree
 owner

I felt really good wearing this saree in Toronto for the first time. Because it was my mother’s wedding saree, I felt a sense of pride. My friends admired the saree as well for its traditional uniqueness.

•I was very pleased to see the saree being worn by women in my community because it’s the cultural garment for Tamil women. When my daughter wore her saree for the first time in Toronto, I was very happy to see her in this beautiful and respectful outfit.

•I purchased my first saree in Toronto in 1989 on Gerrard Street at the India Bazaar. I noticed many people traveling to Toronto regularly visited the Gerrard Street Bazaar to see the stunning range of sarees sold there.

•All Sri Lankan Tamils traditionally wear the saree for various functions; a tradition we continue here in Toronto. For me, the saree is a significant cultural expression. I like to see women from other cultures wearing the saree. I have cousins and friends who have married Australian and British women, who got married in a traditional saree called, Kanchipuram. These are different from my Banaras saree which is a much more traditional and valuable saree.

•It would be very meaningful for me to pass this saree on to one of my daughters. Having received this saree from my mother, it is now important for me to have the saree passed down from one generation to another sharing its legacy for years to come. 

My project

        

In my installation I am trying to show identity of the cloth through the peoples perspective by draping  the  banarasi silk sari in a different way,  how people judge the other person by just looking at them at a 1^st glance. No matter how democratic our country is we don’t feel free to dress how we like and move about in public, because a thought comes to our mind what will the society think of us. No matter if we wear a silk sari in our own way, even though it is a silk banarasi sari which is a symbol of wealth ,people will still stair at us as if we have done some sort of crime or something.

I have tried to show the expression of people through a performing art documentation.

I feel identity of cloth depends on all the aspects given above , now it it to u to decide