Exhibition to showcase hand-woven textile of Varanasi

As many as 46 textile objects, hand-woven on traditional Indian drawlooms, are put on display at an exhibition showcasing the finest trends of contemporary weaving from Varanasi.

The exhibition, "Pra-Kashi: Silk, Gold and Silver from the City of Light", was inaugurated by the Minister of State for Culture & Tourism Prahlad Singh Patel at the National Museum here on Monday.

"The talent of the weavers in the exhibition is really impressive. Even today, the machine is not able to match the beauty of work done by hand and such skills need to be appreciated," the minister said at the inauguration.

Organised by the National Museum in collaboration with Delhi-based not-for-profit Devi Art Foundation, it exhibits textile objects hand-woven on traditional drawlooms for over last 25 years at Asha, a silk weaving workshop in Varanasi.

Curated by Pramod Kumar KG, archivist and managing director at Eka Archiving Services, the exhibition will showcase diverse range and products of the workshop through varied technical aspects, discernible shift in pattern and materials.

"To situate the textiles within the milieu of luxury arts in which they were traditionally created, they will be juxtaposed with 21 objects comprising of historic textiles, miniature paintings, jewellery and decorative arts from the reserve collection of the National Museum," the organisers said in a statement.

The exhibition is a part of National Museum's ongoing effort to collaborate with other leading organisations to showcase the country's rich and diverse culture.

This year itself the National Museum has organised three special thematic exhibitions -- on Baluchari textiles, Himachal folk art and West Bengal's Patachitra or scroll painting. It is planning to organise seven more special exhibitions in next one year in collaboration with different national and international organisations.

'Pra-Kashi' will remain open for general public till October 8 throughout the week except Monday.