Handcrafting Promises

India - Africa Crafts Training and Skill Exchange Workhshop

Ministry of External Affairs, Govt. of India & Dastkari Haat Samiti

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Kenya Uganda South Africa Rwanda Ethiopia Natural Dyeing Embroidery Beadwork Basketry Leather

Handcrafting Promises India - Africa Crafts Training and Skill Exchange Workshop 1 - 15 January 2012 Dilli Haat, New Delhi, India

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This is a project report and catalogue of the India-Africa Crafts Training and Skill Exchange Workshop held from 1st-15th January 2012 at New Delhi, India Project Head Jaya Jaitly Dastkart Haat Samiti, New Delhi, India Design Coordinators Carmen Fernandes Kusum Tiwari Shubhika Lal Sponsor Ministry of External Affairs, Govt. of India Design Ananya, Vrinda Viniyata National Institute of Fashion Technology Photographs Ananya, Vrinda Viniyata Printed by Devendranath Printers Š Dastkari Haat Samiti

No part of this publication can be reproduced, stored in any retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the prior permission of the publisher.

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CONTENTS 06 / Objective 08 / Participants 10 / Inauguration 14 / Guest Speakers 16 / Workshops & Activities 48 / Valedictory Ceremony 5

OBJECTIVE

The Dastkari Haat Samiti’s annual crafts bazaar at Dilli Haat, INA, conceived by its President and craft expert Jaya Jaitly, has a special sparkle as it celebrates its silver anniversary. The event is special as it marks 25 years of dedicated work to uplift crafts people and indigenous artists to celebrate it,190 crafts people from the villages,towns and cities of various part of India, are participating with exciting craft talent and traditions in a never-seen-before avatar.

The visitors can interact, learn, and appreciate and expose themselves to India’s traditional crafts and it’s dynamism.

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18 prominent African craftswomen and resource persons from around 6 African countries (Kenya, Ethiopia, South Africa, Uganda and Rwanda) are participating in this event by Dastkari Haat Samiti under “`Handcrafting Promises” for “Crafts Skill Development and Natural Dye Workshop”. Skill training and exchange workshops in Basketry, Leather, Beadwork, Embroidery, Weaving and Natural Dyeing are organised for the participants from African countries.

Hence,African crafts people will benefit from this opportunity to learn from Indian crafts people various new skills, facets of capacity building and marketing and also showcase their crafts for Indian market feedback.

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PARTICIPANTS

Trainers from India

Participants from Africa

Natural Dyeing

Mura Collective - Delhi Shamjibhai Vankar - Gujarat Govardhan Panika - Odisha Ibrahim Haji - Madhya Pradesh

Kenya

Basketry

rkenana@yahoo.com

jnkubana@gahayalinks.com

Kenya

Uganda

Shiv Kumari - Uttar Pradesh Meera Thakur - Bihar

Beadwork

Savitaben - Gujarat Shabnam - Uttar Pradesh Sheela Rajora - Madhya Pradesh

Embroidery

Shabir Ali Beig - Jammu & Kashmir Devibai Babu Chavan - Karnataka

Leather

Puranmal - Rajasthan C/o : dastkarihaat@gmail.com

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Rahab Naisotuae Kenana Susan Seela Sikawa Ndungu Kamau Wanjema

Jennifer Mulli Anne Kanini Kyule Millicent Seela Letoya

Rwanda

Janet Nkubana Kayatesi Seraphine Nabayo Prisca

Kinene Nusula Gwokyalya Christine Semigga Lillian

info@katchy-kollections.com

nusulak@yahoo.com

South Africa

Ethiopia

Eugenie Drakes Beauty Nwanandzerisi Maswanganyi Deogratias Sabela info@piece.co.za

Million Kendeya Tesfay Wesene Herpasa Alemitu Areo C/o : com.adisababa@mea.gov.in

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INAUGURATION

The inauguration of the African workshop for crafts and natural dyes was done by the Chief Minister of Delhi Mrs Sheila Dixit. She visited all the crafters at their stalls and spoke to the African participants. The celebration of the 25th Anniversary of the Dastkari Haat Samiti and the African Workshop then took place on the main stage of Dilli Haat.

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Eminent persons like dancer Dr Sonal Mansingh, fashion designer Ritu Kumar, architect of Dilli Haat Pradeep Sachdeva, Senior graphic designer Sunita Kanvinde, Mr Ravi Bangar and Alok Ranjan Jha of the Ministry of External Affairs, Mr GG Saxena, Managing Director , Delhi Tourism, and Mr Vinay Bhushan, General Manager, Delhi Tourism were welcomed by the Samiti. All the African visitors received tie-dyed scarves from Samiti crafts members who were trainers at the workshop.

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GUEST SPEAKERS

Eminent speakers like Carmen Fernandes, Senior designer, Anjana Somany and Purnima Rai,of the Crafts Council of India , Sandeep Dixit, Member of Parliament (Congress party), Veena Sikri, Proffessor Jamia Millia University and former Ambassador, Vandana Shiva, prominent environmentalist, Dr Mira Shiva, well known health activist, addressed the participants of the workshop on different days. They advised on how to organize, market craft effectively, the challenges faced by artisans and how to overcome some of them. They also gave an overview of the Indian craft scenario, politics versus development, food security and women’s rights, health care for workers, future programmes to carry forward capacity building and exchanges between women of Africa and India. . The sessions were very interactive as and all participants, including visitors, took a keen interest and not only asked questions but also shared experiences.

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WORKSHOPS & Activities The Workshop programme covered 5 skills : Natural Dyeing, Embroidery, Basketry, Leather work and Beadwork. Senior crafts persons, well-versed in all these crafts, imparted new knowledge, demonstrated alternative techniques, and learned African techniques to widen their own skill base.

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LEATHER

Artisans from Rajasthan collaborated with artisans from Kenya, sharing their sense of aesthetics, to create bags and pouches embellished with beadwork. They not only shared their knowledge of tools and techniques but also participated in an exchange of ideas.

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LEATHER

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PRODUCTS

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NATURAL DYEING

The natural dyeing workshop coordinated by Kusum Tiwari demonstrated preparation of dyes using natural substances that impart different colors. Not only fabric but also grass, paper beads, leather were dyed and then developed into products. In addition to this, a technique called ‘Shibori’ (a form of resist dyeing from Japan) was also taught to the artisans.

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NATURAL DYEING

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Natural Dyeing - Ingredients

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PRODUCTS

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BEADWORK

Trainers from Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh taught their different styles of beadwork to create accessories and utility products. The artisans from Africa demonstrated a unique technique of making beads out of waste paper by rolling it which could then be used for necklaces.

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BEADWORK

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PRODUCTS

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BASKETRY

Basket making using thick and thin grass was demonstrated in the workshop. There was an exchange of skills and ideas as the Indian artisans not only taught their techniques to the African artisans but also learnt from them. The participants enjoyed the interaction and developed beautiful coasters and baskets.

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PRODUCTS

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EMBROIDERY

Artisans from India demonstrated Sozni embroidery of Kashmir and embroidery of Karnataka. The artisans worked in collaboration embroidering African motifs and designs using Indian techniques, combining mirror work with stitches.

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PRODUCTS

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PLY SPLIT BRAIDING

The technique of ply split braiding is known in very few places in India and central Asia. Former senior faculty member of the National Institute of Design, Mr Errol Pires, conducted a workshop to learn this form of braiding for 5 days for African and Indian crafts people.

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ACTIVITIES

Under the guidance of Designers Carmen Fernandes, Shubhika Lal and Kusum Tiwari, and master dyers in shibori/indigo, ( Delhi) red madder, (Odisha) lac colours (Gujarat) and block printing with natural dyes (Madhya Pradesh), cloths were embroidered, printed, dyed and made into scarves and purses to suggest end use of the cloth with value-addition.

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Basketry techniques from Uttar Pradesh and Bihar were shared , Beadwork styles and techniques were shared, taught and adopted from Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat, Leather emboss, stitching and embroidery was taught by master crafts persons from Rajasthan, and Embroidery was demonstrated and taught by Kashmiri and Karnataka master trainers and practitioners.

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VALEDICTORY CEREMONY

On 14th January, a collective meeting was held and attended by Mr Gurjit Singh and Mr. Alok Ranjan Jha to inspect the workshop activities and final output. All the skills learned and products made were displayed for the officials and the public. There was a lively and very positive interaction between the African participants and Mr Gurjit Singh, in which all the resource persons and crafters were highly appreciative of the Workshop and all they had learned.

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They were very impressed by India’s wide variety of crafts, the infrastructure available at Dilli Haat for Crafters to exhibit and sell, and were also eager to purchase raw materials for their future work in their own countries from India, because of the wide variety and a positive price factor.

They established useful contacts with Indian crafters who could provide resource materials to them like glass beads, metal accessories and woven fabrics.

The participants proposed that they would like to work for longer periods with Indian craftsers in their homes, and also visit more organizations and institutions associated with the craft sector.

Mr Gurjit Singh proposed that their should also be marketing avenues opened up for African crafts in India and that they could come annually to such events.

Dastkari Haat Samiti Team and volunteers arranged for the African participants to visit wholesale markets, and to engage at a closer level with all its crafts person members at Dilli Haat to learn about organization, production, raw materials and marketing.

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