Cross Stitch and Other Variations of EXAMPLE of a Into China That Occurred During the Tang Lives

4 DECCAN HERALD Sunday, May 15, 2016 SundayHerald art & culture Models of nature For the art installation ‘Ash dome’, British artist David Nash planted 22 ash trees in a vortex-like shape near Wales, in 1977! The exact location of this growing artwork in nature remains a guarded secret. EDGY EMBROIDERY TRIBAL DANCE Moves for The global stitch festivities GOPIKA NATHsews the story of the humble cross-stitch that has percolated across ribal dances are fun to watch as the The dance form sua, or sugga dance, costumes, the music and the exu- performed by the women who hail from civilisations and cultures Tberance make for a jaw-dropping Maikal Hills, defines the elegance and experience. A trip to Chhattisgarh grace of tribal women in general. Per- proved this. formed a month before Deepavali, it de- y earliest memory of doing While in Bastar, an opportunity to rives its name from parrot (sua or sugga), cross-stitch is when I was watch the Muria tribals perform their na- and features movements that mimic a about 12 years old. A birth- tive dance excited me. Almost all Murias parrot’s walk. The dancers clap their day gift-set of fabric with de- undergo training in community dances hands and move their heads like a parrot, Msigns to embroider had me at ghotul, a tribal hut which is their cul- and enjoy every bit of it. spend my winter holiday learning this. tural centre. There is a touch of reverence In fact, groups of girls move from one Cross-stitch is not part of the popular to these dances, too. For, they begin the village to another to perform this. The repertoire of traditional Indian embroi- dance with an invocation to Lingo Pen, most fascinating bit of this dance is that dery. But, just like it’s more natural for me the phallic deity of the tribe and the it uses a single prop, a wooden clapper to speak the English language than write founder of ghotul; and by worshipping called thiski. The only other music heard or converse in Hindi, cross-stitch is also their drums. is the rhythmic clapping of hands. ‘native’ to my fingers. According to their belief, Lingo Pen was The group dance has one dancer in the The process of embroidering a picture the first musician to teach Muria boys the art middle who holds an earthen pot on her using squares fascinates me. It breaks of drumming. When the dancers congregate head. The pot, covered with paddy shoots, down the figure, not unlike the pixels of a at a festive occasion, they beat the drums to also has a wooden parrot in it. This particu- digital image, and you’re never quite sure signal the commencement of dance. lar dancer turns toward the row that is per- how it’s going to look until you’ve finished. forming, and hence is always on the move. Counting the threads as you go along is The happy dance This dance reminded me of the kaksar also a great exercise in concentration. The dance I watched, har endanna, is per- dance performed by the people who in- Fabrics used for doing cross-stitch are formed to celebrate marriages. It begins habit the hilly forest region of Abujmarh, called even-weave, or matte, woven to en- with a group of boys accompanying the in which the dancers carry dummy horses sure the same number of threads per inch, groom to the ceremonial place, carrying on their shoulders and move slowly in a vertically and horizontally. The cross- ritualistic offerings and gifts. The girls wide circle. This is to invoke the blessings stitch method uses the little squares, de- and the drummers soon join the merry- of the almighty for good harvests. The marcated by dots formed between the makers. What follows is a happy dance costume for boys is white long robes, warp and the weft threads, for easy inser- involving a variety of movements — from while for girls, it’s finery. tion of the needle. There are many varia- running to kneeling to bending and jump- Colourful, melodic and eye-catching — tions of cross-stitch, including a half cross- ing. It’s more entertaining to watch the tribal dances in short. stitch called ‘tent’ stitch. And I’ve devised drummers dance. VATHSALA V P my own version, of a ‘crazy cross-stitch’, that does not count the warp and the weft threads, but layers of cross-stitches are used for blending colours to create subtle, shaded effects. COLOURED VARIETY (Left) A Garasia Jat tunic embroidered with cross-stitch and mirrors; cross-stitch on ‘paj ntua’ For years I had worked with variations or ﬂower cloth, used by the Hmong ethnic group of Vietnam. PHOTOS BY AUTHOR of this stitch without questioning. But as my curiosity grew, I asked around, wanting to know how it had come to India. Many churi. They are Islamic pastoralists who the Crusaders, onto Europe. people assumed it was the influence of originated outside of Kutch, but their em- THE Paradoxically, it has also been suggested Christian missionaries. broidered dresses are unique to Kutch that this embroidery practice may have Having attended an Irish Catholic con- and Sindh. EARLIEST travelled in the opposite direction, citing vent school, I know how the culture they At the Kala Raksha stall, ‘tent’ stitch or the first important migration of foreigners brought with them has percolated into our half-cross stitch and other variations of EXAMPLE OF A into China that occurred during the Tang lives. But, could there be some other link? the stitch were embroidered on tunics, Dynasty. Persians, Arabs and travellers Research revealed cross-stitch in gar- cushion covers, purses and other items. CROSS-STITCH- from Greece and India also travelled via ments from Hissar, Bihar, Sindh and Historically, the earliest example of a EMBROIDERED the Silk Route to China. The caravans car- Baluchistan — folk and tribal dresses from cross-stitch-embroidered piece was dis- ried articles for sale as well as itinerant late 19th or early-20th century. covered in a Coptic tomb. Preserved by PIECE WAS craftsmen who practised their skills wher- the dry desert climate, a design of upright ever they settled. Their influence on the Adopted stitch crosses on linen from 500 AD was un- DISCOVERED designs of Chinese textiles is evinced in Kasuti, which is done in Karnataka, also earthed in Upper Egypt. Few pieces of patterns that bear similarity to Persian uses the spaces between warp and weft decorated fabric from ancient civilisations fabrics. IN A COPTIC NOTES FROM NATURE ‘Sua’ dance, performed by women hailing from Maikal Hill, threads, counting them, to create geomet- have survived because, unlike metal and Chhattisgarh, mimics the movement of parrots. ric patterns, but it’s not clear how this tech- ceramic objects excavated from archaeo- TOMB IN Status message nique came to the subcontinent, or why it logical sites, natural fibres do not survive The spread of cross-stitch designs to so remains on the periphery of the embroi- the rigour of time nearly as well. EGYPT. many locations makes it difficult to pin- dery practices for which India is Not only is it difficult to ascertain exact point its exact origin. But, one of the more renowned. details, there is not enough accurate in- important and widespread functions of While convents may have imparted this formation to trace the specific origin of cross-stitch has been to embellish peasant skill to most urban embroiderers, cross- cross-stitch embroidery. Courtesy the garments and household linens. In Pales- What’s not to love? stitch is not confined to the cities. It’s a re- great Silk Route, this embroidery has tine, once a traditional craft practised by cent addition to the kantha repertoire. found a cross-cultural identity like few oth- village women, it was an important symbol They call it tin phor, for the 3 steps that ers, and cross-stitch is done in different of Palestinian culture, often as a way of >>Continued from Page 1 Then there are these people who want complete 1 set of crosses. countries across the world. indicating family wealth and status in the to send their children to study abroad. The Bagh and the Phulkari embroi- In Uzbekistan and Afghanistan, very community. They even laughed at my jokes. And then “We wouldn’t really bank on the colleges derers of the Swat Valley have also used fine and detailed cross-stitch is done on The Samplers that were popular in Eu- I get a couple of emails from people settled here. It’s better the child gets the ‘best of this stitch alongside the darning stitch. sai goshas, which are V-shaped strips used rope were generally stitched by young abroad — “Are you sure the doctors in In- education’.” And, in Daman and Diu, the clothes of to identify and decorate bedding rolls girls learning how to sew, recording al- dia are good? I really wouldn’t trust the I just find that laughable. I have nothing the Portuguese and Christian women, when not in use. The embroidery is also phabet and other patterns to be later used medical system out there.” against colleges in other countries. I am which are renowned for their embroi- done by ethnic groups in Vietnam and in their household sewing. The earliest These kind of messages really got me sure they are good, too. But, we don’t have dery, use cross-stitch among other em- Thailand. surviving, dated Sampler was stitched in mad. I never responded to them because any less.

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