Preserving Crafts through Architecture - A case of Sujani Quilt by Rupali Ekbote

PRESERVING CRAFTS THROUGH ARCHITECTURE A case of Sujani Quilt by Rupali Ekbote SAIC

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TITLE/IMAGE STATEMENT INTRODUCTION AND THEORY

SUJANI

Architecture and Craft History Techniques

PRECEDENTS

Cultural Trail Indianapolis-2013 Superkelin Denmark-2012 The Gates - Christo and Jeanne Claude-2005 PROPOSAL Bharuch Heritage city - History and Analysis Sites in focus â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Introduction and Observations Intervention Proposals

CONCLUSION

THESIS STATEMENT It is through the practice of craft that one connects to the history of the people, place and their culture. Every civilization throughout history has had a textile tradition through which people learn and sustain their social, civic and religious practices. Semper argued that architecture’s origin was not in nature but in-fact in ‘textiles’…and saw the wall as a woven enclosure with carpets and tapestries being the �irst spatial demarcations describing wickerwork as the “essence of the wall.”(Semper, 1989) The Craftsmen involved in making such crafts that are passed on through generations are extremely knowledgeable, culturally rich and yet their livelihoods and skills are in danger today. It is observed that as the mainstream society continues to progress, the craftsmen sees de-appreciation for their skills and lowered value of their workmanship which eventually results in the loss of the craft and with that, an entire legacy of knowledge.

A textile craft of a 200-year-old pocketed quilt named ‘Sujani’ calls for preservation today. The reasons for its decline are the lack of awareness and disinterest among normal public for the craft. A renewed experience of an existing ‘heritage walk’ is perceived as a giant exhibition ground for Sujani, to pull the craft out from its remote setting onto the streets, giving it the space to breathe a new contemporary life for its survival. The aim of this research is to study this local craft and bring awarenness for the craft among wider public by way of articulation of the existing architectural sites of historical signi�icance. This thesis tests the potential of crafts through its ‘Integration’, ‘translation’ and/or ‘supplementation’ using current techniques and argues that a local craft can be preserved through architecture for the interpretation of a cultural condition within the fabric of its belonging.

INTRODUCTION AND THEORY “Architecture only concerns itself with those characters of an edi�ice which are above and beyond its common use. Building becomes architecture when the technical and functional considerations are resolved and the real aspect of production are taken to the level of poetic expression.” The Seven Lamps of Architecture (1849) Ruskin John

Craft can be seen as a medium of expression in architecture… that can help measure and evaluate a cultural condition of a place over time. “Craft works with spatial and temporal concerns to produce a space crafting that is attentive to signs of matter, a privileging of the haptic (a tendency that invites close attention) as distinct from the optic (a tendency towards detachment), a working and reworking that differs from design techniques of abstraction.”

World in Making:Cities Craft Design, by Suzie Attiwill

“It is also refreshing to be reminded that architecture can be evaluated by an entirely different set of criteria, involving the appreciation of craft and an expressive emphasis on its tectonic and tactile dimension.” Carl Botticher’s Kernform (building craft) and the Kunstform (surface craft) and Frampton’s tectonic and stereotomic theories re-inspire oneself to think of the physiological and emotional engagement of the human senses with the built form, so as to make a meaningful representation. “It seeks in this way to re-affirm the very ancient

connection between the arti�icer and the arti�ice, between the designer’s initial conception and design’s hard-won ingenuity.” Foreward by H.F. Mallgrave, Frampton, Kenneth, and John Cava, Studies in Tectonic Culture

ARCHITECTURE AND CRAFT initiate CONNECTION Physiological connections with the body and built environment - tectonic Psychological connections with people’s mind - within memory

ARCHITECTURE AND CRAFT initiate PRESERVATION “the fundamental character of dwelling is this sparing and preserving” The craftsman, Sennett

Preservation of the craft and architecture both can contribute to construct visual congeniality in the minds of the people regardless of where they are at a speci�ic place and time. Research into the brain and memory has found that the brain makes new neural pathways during recollection as the retelling of a memory connects it to the time and place where it is retold. On memory: Deborah Aschheim at the Mattress Factory, Grenier L., 2007

Through the visual representation of mapping, geography and history is mediated by time and space – by landscape and narrative. Therefore, the connection between place and narrative is intrinsic to heritage. It provides the setting for an inner landscape of places and memories, which establishes ‘landmarks’ from which the story is told. The stories of the past help inform and shape the perceptions of histories. Landscapes are tangible in terms of their physical location and character that de�ines the place and intangible in terms of the process of memory in place. Exploring the opportunity of craft and narrative in architecture. Peens Macarthy I., 2013

“Understanding the view of the city as plan is very different to the experience of the plan as city, and this difference opens the city to the lens of sentimentality as both a form of nostalgia (remembrance of things past) and a means of production. The future city might bene�it from engaging with the process of how it might be possible to employ the means of craft through the lens of sentimentality to (re) locate (and possibly generate) ideas from derivative and disintegrating images. Crafting the imaginary, Hinton E. and Bremner C.

SUJANI/ सज ु नी /‫يناجس‬ since 1860

WORLD

INDIA

GUJARAT

BHARUCH

Sujani on Globe

BERLIN

St. Petersburg RUSSIA (INRUCS)

SINGAPORE

GUJARAT, INDIA

SECTION SUJANI

USE OF SUJANI

DOUBLE CLOTH - PLAIN WEAVE

PREDOMINANT USE - DOMESTIC

COTTON INFILL

1”

0.78”

QUILT BLANKET/ CUSHION COVER BED COVER / BENCH SPREAD

Sujani patterns

Sujani sizes

color is face up in alternate blocks 36” X 36” X 1”

60” X 90“ X 1”

90” X 90“ X 1” 100” X 90” X 1” 120” X 90” X 1”

checkered 2 colors (white/black) checkered + stripe 2 colors + 1 stripe checkered - H’ pattern 3 colors

striped pattern 2/3/4... colors

Colours Warp yarn Weft yarn -

Pastels Mainly white Mainly coloured

+ many more pattern-1

1 colour+white

2 colour

3 colour

+ many more pattern-1.1

1 colour+white

2 colour

3 colour

+ many more pattern-1.2

1 colour+white

2 colour

3 colour

+ many more pattern-2

1 colour+white

2 colour

3 colour

4 colour

+ many more pattern-2.1(chokdi)

1 colour+white

2 colour

3 colour

4 colour

+ many more pattern-3 (dedh tikka) 1 colour+white

2 colour

3 colour

4 colour

pattern-3.1(3 tikka)

1 colour+white

2 colour

4 colour

3 colour

5colour

4 colour

Sujani loom process 1. BEAMING / WARPING The process of win�ing the hank yarn onto the warp beam for the required 65” width of Sujani and attaching to the requisite ends of the previous beam.

WARP END

heddles

cone hank

drafting plan

double cloth plain weave

warp beam

bundle hank Total ends Loom width

2. DRAFTING AND LIFTING The process of passing the warp ends through the heald eyes of the shafts and helps determining the number of heald shafts per given weave repeat.

6000 = 65”

92 yarn Ends Per Inch

46 Face layer 46 back layer

total 8 shafts

8 7 6 heald 5 shafts 4 3 2 1

x x x x block-1

block-2

- back end

x - face end

3. DENTING

The process of passing warp ends from heddles through the reed comb is termed as denting. normally two ends are passed through each dent of the reed comb.

heddles

reed

4. TYING TO CLOTH BEAM

It is the inal step of loom setting process where each sub-division of the warp sheet is tied individually to the cloth beam starting from the center moving outwards.

WEAVER’S END

breast beam

REED COUNT FOR SUJANI = 48 DENTS 2”

2 YARN ENDS PER DENT (per inch)= 96 ends per inch

cloth beam

Sujani Challenge

Sujani Scope

LACK OF AWARENESS AND RECOGNITION OF THE CRAFT LIMITED MARKETING SPACE AND OPPORTUNITIES

GENERATING AWARENESS THROUGH MATERIAL ENCOUNTERS

LACK OF COMMUNITY SUPPORT

INTRODUCE INTERDISCIPLINARY DESIGN IDEAS AND USE

EXPENSES IN FAIRS AND AFFORDABILTIY

STRENGTHENING COLLABORATIONS

LESS NEWER CRAFTSMEN

CRAFTSMEN INHIBITIONS AND RELUCTANCE HOMES IN REMOTE INTERIORS

STRIKING THE INITIAL DIALOGUE FOR THE CRAFT CREATING LANGUAGE FOR ITS RECOGNITION

case studies

SUPERKELIN DENMARK

LOCAL INTELLIGENCE GLOBAL EXPERIENCE

sewer cover - Israel

playing stand - India

neon sign - China

bench - Iran

maple trees North America bench - Cuba

bicycle tripod - NL

Litter - England

INDIANAPOLIS CULTURAL TRAIL

sign CONNECTING

PEOPLE

AND

PLACES

the female form has often been used in the development of inspiring places.

The Gates

New York City 2005

artists - Cristo and Jeanne Claude / vision-1980 pencil and charcoal: 42â&#x20AC;?x 65â&#x20AC;?

23 miles of pedestrian paths throughout the Central park adorned with 7,500 gates bearing saffron-colored cloth

material studies

CERAMIC white stoneware slip casting

Concrete+Sujani cast

architectural relationships

INSTANCE-1

FA C E O F F Sujani in pavilion

an international and collaborative measure to confront modernism and spread knowledge.

INSTANCE-2

HAPTIC ENCOUNTERS

Sujani as objects

furniture as an apparatus for communication inside and outside space

INSTANCE-3

C I T Y FA B R I C Sujani in streets

a crafted path of colors and patterns weaving the history of place and people

INSTANCE-4

W -

VERNACULAR

Sujani on facades

a language crafted in built materials for the exterior treatment of houses in the old city

3 - WAYS ARCHITECTURE CAN PRESERVE A CRAFT THAT IS AT A RISK OF EXTINCTION

INTEGRATION OF CRAFT

TRANSLATION FROM CRAFT

SUPPLEMENTATION WITH CRAFT

INTEGRATION OF CRAFT

TRANSLATION FROM CRAFT

SUPPLEMENTATION WITH CRAFT

Proposal for city Fabric

HISTORY OF OLD CITY OF BHARUCH

A Greco-roman travel book named ‘Periplus of Erythraean Sea’ written in 1st CE in Greek, referred to the great port of Barygaza or Bharuch at the mouth of river Nammadus (Narmada). www.livehistoryindia.com

Roman Empire

Tyrrhenian

Parthian Empire Teredon

BARYGAZA Tamralipti Sabota Muziris Erythraeum

Timeline and development

layered history 2000 year old

GRECO - ROMAN 1st CE

ARABS 3rd - 17th CE

A D A

EUROPEANS 17th - 19th CE

M 1 AD - 700 AD 700 AD - 942 AD 942 AD - 1605 AD 1605 AD - 1664 AD 1664 AD - 1737 AD 1737 AD - 1900 AD

Bharuch Municipality city boundary map

PORT CITY OF BARYGAZA

19th CE 1st CE

A SACRED CITY WITH MYTHOLOGICAL SIGNIFICANCE DUE TO THE HOLY RIVER NAMMADUS (NARMADA)

GANDHIJI’S MARCH AGAINGT UNFAIR SALT TAX BY BRITISH

NERBUDDDA BRIDGE 1881

1930

18th CE TRADING ON LAND AND WATERS with EGYPT, THE PERSIAN GULF, SYRIA, CEYLON AND THE FAR EAST.

cotton crop cultivation intensi�ies INDO-GREEK COIN OF KING MENANDER-I USED IN BHARUCH

BRITISH TEXTILE INDUSTRY Statue of Unity

1321CE

2019

21st CE

The ‘BROTSCH’ of Portuguese and English JAMI MASJID FORT WALL BUILT IN EARLY 12CE

ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE

17th CE

by American Arch. Michael Graves NARMADA BRIDGE-3

also RELECTS INDIAN TEMPLE ARCHITECTURAL STYLE advent of Valandas (DUTCH)

13 12

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16

Golden bridge Dashawamedh ghat N.T. Dharamshala Bhrugu Temple S.N. Temple Ratan Talao Jami Masjid Parsi Agyari Begumwadi Fort wall Sardar Manzil Victoria Tower R.D. Library Sujani workshop Eidgah Dutch Cemetry

11 9

14 13 R.D. Library Victoria Tower Sardar 11 manzil

Ratan Talao

Jami 7 Masjid

Haji Khana bazaar Agyari

Eidgah

9 Begumwadi 10 Furja Fort

8 Parsi

Dutch Cemetry

S.N.Temple

Bhrugu Temple

N.T. Dharamshala

Dashawamedh Ghat

1 Golden bridge

13 12

11 10

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16

3 5

8 9

1 JAMI MASJID

SECTION

PLAN

Constructed - 1321 CE

Hindu temple architecture converted into a Mosque Sanctuary of 48 pillars 3 large domes 7 small domes 3 Mihrabs Stone Construction

Drawings by Burgess, J. (1896). On the Muhammadan architecture of Bharoch

DUTCH COMMEMORATIVE MEMORIALL 2 domed Kiosks

spired mix Constructed - early 17TH CE

INDO SARACENIC ARCHITECTURE

VOC - Vereenigde OostIndische Compagnie DUTCH EAST INDIA COMPANY - 1602 CE Mix of SPIRES, DOMES and PAVILIONS BRICK and PLASTER ruins

Top view

3 DASHAWAMEDH GHAT

At the banks river ‘Narmada’ one of the seven holy rivers of India Cultural and spiritual signi�icance

Signi�icant view from the bridge for the train route connecting north and south

RASHTRIYA SHALA

Constructed - 1760 CE

Built by cotton Merchant Shri Nathu Thobhan.

Donated it as a school in Satyagrah movement as a part of Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s freedom struggle Masonry and wood construction

today being used as a community gathering space

FURJA FORT WALL

Constructed - 1094 CE - Solanki King of Gujarat

Situated on a hill top overlooking river NARMADA Development of Fort wall - began 19th Feb2019 by Bharuch Tourism Development Society + Bharuch Heritage Forum + Corporate Sponserships

Market View

Street views

CONCLUSION The preservation of a dwindling craft of cultural signiďż˝icance like Sujani is essential to be kept alive and can be done by its physical integration, translation, and supplementation within the built environment. Not only will this initiate conversations/discussions about the craft and skills but by allowing its expression in parallel with the heritage structures as a part of Bharuch heritage walk initiative, one can create new spaces or re-invigorate the existing. Thus, making the craft live in the memory as a part of collective consciousness through the senses of vision and touch.

BIBLIOGRAPHY BOOKS Semper, Gottfried. Style in the technical and tectonic arts, or, Practical aesthetics. United States: Getty Research Institute, 2004. Sennett, Richard. The Craftsman. New Haven: Yale University Press, 2008 Smith, Samuel P.. Starting From “I Don’t Know”: Interviews On Architecture and Craft. Chicago: Soberscove Press, 2015 Mori, Toshiko, “Immaterial/ultramaterial: Architecture, Design, and Materials”, Harvard Design School, 2002 THESES Mahaffey, Logan, "Architecture of materialism: A study of craft in design culture, process, and product", 2009 Forker, Thomas J., "The Dialogue of Craft and Architecture" (2015). Masters Theses. 197 Soun, Phirak, “ Dynamic Ceramic”, University of California Berkeley, MArch thesis 2016, https://escholarship.org/uc/item/0mt5n9x2 MAGAZINE ARTICLES AND PAPERS Karakul, Dr. Özlem, Dalkiran, Dr. Ahmet, “ An integrated approach to the conservation of traditional building crafts and their sustainability in contemporary design, CRAFTARCH 2018 Jain Rishav, Shroff Rooshad, ”Craftsmanship of Risk”, Domus, August 09, 2012, https://www.academia.edu/1833109/CRAFTSMANSHIP_OF_RISK Jencks, Charles, Introduction “What is Radical Post-Modernism” Architectural Design, September 13, 2011, https://doi.org/10.1002/ad.1293

Prof. Thakkar, Jay, Prof. Routh, Rajdeep, “Re-engaging Vernacular Building Practices-Facilitating the revitalization through a systematic approach, https://www.academia.edu Deshpande, Meghana, Thakkar, Jay, ”Craft-Design collaboration in Interior Architecture practices: A model of collaboration”, September 16, 2016, https://issuu.com/meghanadeshpande Deniz, Balik, A. Allmer, “Reinterpretation of Traditional Craft Practices in Contemporary Architecture”, Seoul World Architects Congress, UIA, 2017 So�ield, Mark, “Craft + Context: Connecting Architecture To Place and Time”, Terrain.org, April 16, 2013, Guest editorial Issue 32 AUDIO VISUAL CONTENT Tyagi, Milli, “Sujani: The bygone treasure of Bharuch”, May 11, 2019. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y9SkAbSZm�k Bharuch heritage walk and Restoration Initiative, October 28, 2018, https://bharuch.gujarat.gov.in/heritage-walk Centre for Architecture, New York, “Craft and Architecture: Toshiko Mori in Conversation with Michael Bell”, https://vimeo.com/182560844

THANK YOU