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Aparupa Ghosh
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CONTENTS THE JOURNEY BEGINS
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PROJECT PROPOSAL
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RESEARCH INSPIRATION AND IDEATION
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PRODUCT PROCESS
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PATUAPARA
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FLOWER MARKET
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GALIF STREET
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OLD STRUCTURES
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BOOK STORE
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TRANSPORT
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REFLECTION
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
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THE JOURNEY BEGINS After a 6 week self initiated textile project on urban camouflage, I decided to take it forward for my diploma project. Weavers Studio, Kolkata, a prominent textile organisation with whom I had completed my internship period, accepted my project proposal and thus I started on my journey of space camouflage. Even though it was a client based project, I realised that there was ample work to be done outside the office work environment. The project included a lot of travelling around the city, photographing spaces keeping in mind the concept of merging identity and space, selecting locations out of the hundreds that were clicked, making mood boards, iterations, coming up with various interpretations of the chosen spaces, making fabric swatches and finally creating the final textile pieces. This book trails the process i followed to materialise the concept of camouflage through the medium of textiles over a period of three and a half months.
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PROJECT PROPOSAL Urban Camouflage Textile project based on inspired city spaces that comment or try to grasp the relation and interaction between body and urban space. The body represents one’s identity and expression and is a medium of communication which is responsive as well as interactive with the outside environment, surrounding space or situation. In order to fit in, it adopts certain adaptation techniques based on various social, cultural and political factors. Suggestion of 2 scenarios’ based on a social and cultural situation of multiple identitiesSCENARIO 1 In this age of connectivity there is an urge to fit in and be accepted by communities. Consequently, Generation Y is characterised by fluctuating and transient identities and multiple avatars. In order to merge in with a setting, they change their identities as and when required according to location, crowd, situation and circumstance. Identity camouflage. NEED Break free from the multiple avatars Lead a less superficial life Figure out ‘who am I?’
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SCENARIO 2 Chaos, conflict and connectivity. A fast paced life with no time or patience to soak in the environment. Crowded spaces with no privacy. Abandoned places losing their sanctity. NEED To be alone Avoid conflict Merge in with the urban setting in an unobtrusive manner Being intimate or one with the environment Fly on the wall- observing and witnessing PROPOSAL I stumbled upon the term ‘urban camouflage’ while doing my research on camouflage as an adaptation technique in sea creatures. While looking at the available images on it, I realised that the term had a plethora of connotations- social, political, cultural and so on, and I started to develop my own interpretations of it. What drew me was the apparent identity crisis that everyone in our generation is experiencing. Thus, focusing on the social and cultural context, this project will be an explorative venture to try and merge in the aspects of body and environment with the medium of textiles. It will go through a process of exploring and then finally identifying certain spaces in the city (Calcutta), which typically bring out the essence of the setting, and using them as an inspiration for a range of free flowing surfaces (stoles and sarees) that camouflage with the space and also can be morphed into a form. The textile pieces would be inspired from the chosen spaces, rather than be a replication of it, draping it on the body, camouflaging it with the urban setting. Multiple textile techniques could be incorporated to get the look and feel of the fabric pieces. On the other hand, it might be challenging to experiment with a new technique that can be explored and taken forward to achieve the desired look. Performance art with textiles-finally, using the surfaces as performative elements, not as a mere prop, but as the performer in the performance, in terms of movement and actions that depict a narrative or make a statement on urban camouflage.
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Or it could be a video art or installation (with a concept in mind, shot interestingly), showing the hide and seek nature of camouflage and thus making a statement on the situation. Narrating a story and giving life to textiles. RELEVANT QUESTIONS -What is camouflage? -What is urban camouflage in a social and cultural context? -Why the want or need? -When? In what kind of an environment or situation? -How does one deal with a conflicting mind and emotions in such a situation? -How to conceal or mask? -What relation or connection does the body have with an urban environment? -How can this relation be related to textiles? How can it be inspired from the body-space interaction? -Who are the artists who have worked on a similar kind of theme? Examples of their work. APPROACH AND PROCESS Research on urban camouflage- articles, artists who have worked on similar projects and their works Tours to interesting locations and identifying potential spaces in the city Photographing spaces, textures and surfaces Building narratives based on the inspired photographs that deal with the theme of identity camouflage. Taking elements from the photographs and composing the textile pieces Placing them into a collage Scripting the photo essay or video installation or dramatic performance and executing it MATERIALS AND RESOURCES Weavers studio library- books on various textile techniques Weavers studio- fabric resource, dye lab, printing studio and work space Photographic equipment Video equipment (maybe)
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CHALLENGE Capturing the essence of the chosen spaces on fabric Recreating the space elsewhere as far as display and presentation is concerned To effectively show the connection and interaction between body and space. Coming up with a collection of fabric surfaces (stoles and sarees) that will be both appropriate for the client and also as performance art pieces. Depiction of the performance LEARNING OUTCOMES To seamlessly merge 3 different creative mediums- photography, textile techniques and performance in an effective way To understand the cultural and social context of the situation To be able to follow a well thought out process, with appropriate design tools and ideologies, to achieve the desired outcome To explore my role as an artist and designer in bringing out a social condition through the medium of textiles in an abstract yet expressive manner Effective translation of ideas through exploration of various creative mediums, individually as well as collectively To be able to make the textile pieces serve a dual purpose as inspired art textile pieces as well as functional textiles
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RESEARCH INSPIRATION IDEATION
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Naval fleets once were the largest painting canvases in the world. During World War I Modernism descended on Allied naval planners with a bang, turning fleets into the largest painting canvases in the world. German U-boats were sinking enormous amounts of shipping and there was no really effective defense against them. It is axiomatic that if you can’t stop the people who are shooting at you, you should make it very hard for them to find you. Thus, camouflage.
Ann Hamilton
Body art and installation examples by Lucy McRae
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‘Refugee wear’ by Lucy Orta- body wear extends to include shelter.
Camouflage art by Joshua Callaghan
In order to understand the concept of camouflage and its association with body and space, a whole lot of research went in the usage of the term in our culture and society (what, when, how) and also looking at the existing work of artists on this theme. Their work ranged from functional forms to purely aesthetic and artistic renditions of the theme and played a big role in moulding my thought process for the project.
Body camouflage
Final mood board
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Textile technique inspirations
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Location
Spaces in Calcutta
Patuapara Flower Market Galif Street
Narrative Mood board
Elements Colour palette Composition/ Layout Technique
Iteration Exploration Final Product Photo Shoot
Different interpretations of a particular location Saree Stole Dupatta
Old structures Book store Transport Elements Technique Play of colour Free Flowing Surfaces
Camouflage- identity, Textile, space
Basic process followed
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PRODUCT PROCESS
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The extensive project process took me through a journey of building mind visual narratives on my canvas of the city of Calcutta and the creations that were inspired from these spaces became a reflection of the city and its people.
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PATUAPARA
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Patuapara (potters locality), Kalighat is the potters hub where round the year the potters are engaged in making mundane clay pottery. But come the festive season, the same ‘patua’s’ dot the streets moulding mud sculptures of various Hindu deities. Masses of them are lined in corners, the sculpted mud heads dry on tarpaulin sheets, the brown jewels adorn the sculptures, the forms ready to be painted. The mud silhouettes remain without an identity or charm, looking like hoards of insignificant forms piled together, till they are finally smeared with colours, instilling life and expression, breaking the monotony.
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Iterations and explorations
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The final stole was inspired from the wet and dry creased hand texture of the potter, as he moulds the clay in to a form, so the aim was to translate the raw, hand made feel on to the fabric surface. Chocolate, grey and ferozi (turquoise) were smeared with a spatula on the tussar fabric and finally texture printed with white discharge.
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Tussar stole hand painted in ferozi (turoquoise) and chocolate followed by white discharge texture block print.
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What attracted me most were the clay textures, the earthy tones and the act of smearing the clay on to the straw structures to mould the forms. Keeping these in mind i made some texture based fabric swatches using the dull grey and khaki colour palette. The final saree was adapted from one of the explorations on tussar, using roller texture on the body and brush swirls on the palla, keeping the sombre hues with a hint of ferozi (turquoise).
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Tussar saree with hand painted palla and roller textured body
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FLOWER MARKET
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The Howrah flower market is the largest of its kind in Asia. The space is bright and vibrant, exuding positivity and freshness. The utter chaos and mayhem adds to the beauty of this place- blooming, full of life, reaching out, similar, contrasting, exuberant, attractive, overwhelming, and charismatic.
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Initially I tried to play with the form of the flowers and developed block designs for the same. The fabric explorations thus, turned out to be a bit too structured and a literal adaptation of the space. In order to change that, for the final piece, I decided to play with abstract shapes and elements to represent the form, keeping to the vibrant colour scheme.
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Patchwork stole created with a combination of techniques- batik, block printing and hand painting with sponge dipped in inks.
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The roses with their organic structure and layered look, were an interesting form to play with. I tried both abstract as well as literal translations of it and developed block and screen designs for the same.
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Saree and stole layouts, fabric explorations and final rose block
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Block print explorations and process for the final tussar stole. The fabric has two colour bases, roller textured then smeared with a spatula and finally printed in ‘char chhap’- four colour block print.
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Crepe patchwork dual colour variation stole, sponge texture printed, hand painted in chocolate, red and orange and finally shifting (repeating or overlapping the block print unevenly) texture printed in chocolate and red.
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‘Char chhap’ or four colour block printed dual colour tussar stole
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The beautiful colour range and shape formations were interesting elements to work with. The fabric explorations ranged from stencil prints to layered block prints. I eventually developed block designs for the same that were incorporated in the final saree and stole.
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Block printed tussar saree brush painted in light maroon and roller textured in khaki, chutney and bottle green.
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The lotus tussar saree was given a gradation roller texture in khaki, chutney and bottle green. The rekh (outline block) was printed in chocolate and datta (filler block) in khaki and bottle green in places, extending to the body.
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Tussar stole- Batik printed, dipped in chocolate, dyed in pink and finally screen printed in maroon and chocolate.
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After a lot of iterations on what would be the most appropriate technique in terms of printing and weaving, to depict the space, the final piece was a two colour tie dyed crushed tussar stole.
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Block patterns developed based on the hibiscus formations. I also tried to play with the red and white colour combination. The fabric swatches were mostly texture block printed. For the final pieces, various textile techniques were used, like embroidery, block print and batik in red and green tones.
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China silk and looped matka red and white woven stole
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The weave plans were develeped based on the red and white colour palette. The three stoles that were finally made are variations of the same extra weft looping technique, adding an interesting element to an otherwise plain woven stole. The warp and the weft yarn was china silk, with the extra weft loops and border in white matka.
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China silk and looped matka woven stoles- white on white and red on white
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The hibiscus bud pattern was developed into two blocks- rekh (outline block) and datta (filler block). The colour tones were limited to shades of red and green.
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Patchwork tussar stole incorporating multiple textile techniques like batik, block print and hand embroidery in tones of green.
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Tussar stole roller textured with maroon, red, orange and pink and parts of it hibiscus block printed in bottle green.
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Mood board, iterations, explorations and fabric swatches.
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Red and black surface textured tussar stole.
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Block printed hand embroidered patchwork tussar stole.
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GALIF STREET
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Whiplash movements across water, smears of colour instilling life, sometimes locked in jars or cages, waiting to break free, the movementt and cacophony bringing life to the otherwise quiet and restrained street.
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Iterations and fabric explorations
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The chipped walls, wet and dry textures, dull and vibrant hues inspired me to make the initial paper and fabric explorations that were taken forward to make the final stole.
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Dual texture hand paint and block print variation crepe stole
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OLD STRUCTURES
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Doctors Lane, Central Calcutta. There was a time when the walls were freshly painted, people walked in and out and the windows would be open. Now there is no movement. The occasional visitors are the curious passersby who peep in to see the remains of its old splendour. They sneak in, step carefully and speak in hushed tones, not to disturb its sanctity, in an attempt to become one with the space.
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Iterations and fabric explorations based on simple geometric shapes.
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Warp: 2 shades of blue Bhagalpuri silk (indigo and dark blue) placed alternately Weft: 2 shades of blue, chocolate and grey Bhagalpuri silk and blue Matka in parts Double cloth checkered woven stole
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Warp: 2 shades of blue Bhagalpuri silk (indigo and dark blue) placed alternately Weft: Indigo and dark blue Bhagalpuri silk Jamdani with indigo blue matka silk
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Warp: 2 shades of blue Bhagalpuri silk placed alternately Weft: China silk and Bhagalpuri silk woven in gradation from darker to lighter hues.
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I tried to simplify the orange, rust and brown brick structures into simple geometrical shapes and made various paper iterations and fabric swatches.
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Clamp resist and screen printed patchwork tussar stole
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Four colour tye dyed tussar stole
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Clamp resist roller textured and block printed tussar stole
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BOOK STORE
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Stacked, old and new, visited, revisited or forgotten. References and inspirations.
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Iterations and fabric explorations
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Fabric explorations- block and screen print.
The final piece was hand painted in two colour ways- red and blue and given a light texture block print.
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Dual colour variation hand painted block printed tussar stole
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TRANSPORT
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Symbolising transient identities. Identities on the move, the inbetween stage where they transform themselves and get prepared to camouflage with the next setting or circumstance. With every turn, with every direction they stumble upon newer situations and adapt to them. Always, steady in motion, it sometimes whizzes past even before one can grasp it.
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Initially I was struggling to ttranslate my iterations on to fabric, so for the final piece I simplified the look and worked with merging hues and simple block patterns.
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Block printed roller textured tussar stole
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REFLECTION It was an exciting experience and it has come a full circle with the completion of this project. The process was exhaustive and there were times i felt unsure about the final outcome. Even with its share of ups and downs, it seems almost satisfying, although a lot more could have been achieved in terms of time and production. After the extensive product process the real test was to photograph the final surfaces in the inspired settings. Visiting and capturing those spaces again with an added element, the free flowing surfaces wrapped around the body, immediately livened the space and gave an interesting dimension to it. Rather than camouflage, it almost seemed to immerse or emerge from the space. In retrospect, the products could have been more elaborate and detailed and I had to simplify most of them and work on single textile translations of a given space, due to time constraints. However, working at a familiar place with familiar people at Rangeen 2, was an enriching experience since it gave me the freedom to use their resources and materials as required for each product. On the whole I am happy to have achieved what i set out to do, but i believe that it is a mere starting point to a project that can definitely be taken forward in the long run.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENT A big thank you toSrishti School of Art Design and Technology Meera Raghu Anandhi Swati Sudo Danika Avy Weavers Studio Ms. Darshan Shah Ms. Monika Savla All the staff, printers and weavers Ma, papa and dada for all the love Priyanka Doel Madhura Jit Tisha Karno House no.17 people My fellow dipper friends :)
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School of Art, Design and Technology Documentation by: Aparupa Ghosh Diploma project Textile Design October, 2010
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