#a100hands

Krishnaprakash Vasant Martand, is an artist who hails from Gulbarga, Karnataka.

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

He specializes in ink and paper 'line art' that features for the large part abstract, heavily ornamented gods and goddesses drawn primarily from Indian mythology. 

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

Unlike the famed Surpur miniature paintings which his work has a passing resemblance to, and which he claims as a big influence, he uses clean lines in the service of a revisionist, contemporary, whimsical re-imagining of the characters that dot the ancient Indian epics. His larger works, usually monochromatic, are dense and intricate and calligraphic in their treatment.

Leather Mojadia is a craft that is native to Rajasthan. Kajod Mal from Udaipuria, Rajasthan and his son are master mojari (footwear) craftsmen keeping this 500 year old art alive. With a group of karigars (artisans), they make and sell mojaris through their enterprise, ‘ Village Leather Craft.’ The mojaris are hand crafted and designed from scratch by these artisans.

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

The team of artisans locally procure Goat and Camel leather which is then cured by them. Although they buy dyes for the mojaris from the market, the base colours are mixed to create unique shades. Also, some of the artisans when making the mojaris, measure it by hands. 

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

Traditionally, mojaris would only consist of two colours but with the times changing, today, they make mojaris that are multi coloured. They have also started using hand block printed fabric on the mojaris, moving away from the traditional ‘leather only’ ones. 

When Susan John of A Sunny Disposition first met the group Chitrika from Andhra Pradesh, she was completely bowled over by their interesting weaves and signature checks.

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

The trigger was the ME2WE project and lines of communication soon opened up. Susan was discussing her idea with Switha of Chitrika and the result has been some really trendy, bright happy handloom ‘Checks’ that complement A Sunny Disposition’s range of handmade bags.

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

Susan feels that using this fabric for the first time has been challenging, being cotton and expandable and after a lot of trial and error, she was able to hit upon the right pattern.  

To be launched at the ME2WE section a the 7th Annual Handmade Collective. Make sure to visit our Bazaar.

Can anyone think of plants without soil! It’s good news for those who want a low-maintenance plant and yet a plant that enhances the aesthetic of a space. Monisha Lobo, specialising in the art of making elegant terrariums and charmingly styled plants has teamed up with Glass Blower Mahesh to experiment something very unique called Aeriums. Aeriums are glass gardens that hold Tillandsias, also known as air plants, in a glass vessels.

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

Mahesh is creating a range of glass orb Aeriums meant for air plants. “These air plants don’t need soil for existence. They draw nutrients from air. I am placing these plants in the aeriums along with pebbles and moss, creating a beautiful garden within the glass orb,” says Monisha Lobo.

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

The collaboration between the two was an interesting combination that transcended language and geographical barriers. Mahesh had to understand what the Aerium was and how his mastery in glass blowing could create what Monisha had in mind. Monisha on the other hand had to spend time understanding the constraints that Mahesh had and the net take out of more empathy of each others’ craft. A truly rural- urban collaboration.

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

Go green with these with these unique Glass Gardens. Do visit  our 7th Annual Handmade Collective Bazaar.

Craft Collaboration: Crochet and Patwa Threadwork

Artists: Saritha Ashok and Vishnu Patwa

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

Crochet, is a very popular Western method of creating fabric by interlocking loops of yarn or thread is well known to all. A 100 Hands decided to introduce Crochet to Patwa Threadwork. The  Patwa community has been making traditional accessories with thick weaves of thread for many generations.

This collaboration has resulted in Neckpieces using strands made with Patwa technique. It also includes shells and pom-poms that are seen usually in Patwa pieces. Crochet paisleys were added to them to finish the pieces.

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

The top parts of the earrings were made using Patwa techniques and crochet pieces were added to them.

Here’s how it happened:

Saritha Ashok from Rainbow Bunting,  sent rough drawings and description of what she wanted from Vishnu ji through Whatsapp. He made samples first and once it was finalised, she then sent him the list of colour choices. Once she received the items, she added crochet to the pieces.

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

The primary challenge faced was communication with the other artist. There were small language issues. Also, since rural artists are not active on phone, there was a time lag in communication.

In her words, Saritha describes her thoughts on the collaboration- ‘This theme has been very exciting. I would never have attempted to do it, if it was not the theme this year. That is why A Hundred Hands is different. They always come up with new and innovative ideas to challenge the artists and improve interactions among them. I also learned more about Patwa, because I had to refer a lot about it before starting to design the pieces’

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

Something this unique and beautiful shouldn’t be missed out on. Come pick your statement pieces at our 7th Annual Handmade Collective Bazaar.

Handloom  fabric to line Newspaper Rolled Picnic Baskets : From Women in Bangalore to Women in Shimoga.

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

This is nature’s best with recycled hand-rolled newspaper picnic baskets  from Aardra lined with Charakas handloom naturally dyed cotton to set the mood of celebrating nature. The naturally dyed fabric is developed from Areca Nut – which commonly grows in the Shimoga District where Charaka is based. This collaboration is between Urban Group of Women Aardra based in Bangalore and the Rural group of Women based in Heggodu.   

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

Aardra aims at giving a fresh lease of life to the humble newspaper. To further enhance the longevity of the products, they intended to line a few of them with fabric for example,  storage baskets and handbags. They were attracted to Charaka for its skin friendly fabric, and its philosophy of bringing back handloom and natural dyes into the market.

Make time to come and pick up your picnic baskets at our 7th Annual Handmade Collective Bazaar.

This collaboration is a journey that goes from Bangalore all the way to Bhuj. Bangalore is known for it slight nip in the air and for its sudden spells of cold. That’s when one is going to need a hand knitted neck warmer made by our very own Bangalore Knitter- Madhu Mehra.

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

Madhu Mehra from She who Knits integrated patterns of Ajrakh block printed fabric into her very warm neck warmers. The fine Ajrakh fabric acts as perfectly soft liner inside the wool. In addition, the amalgamation of typically Indian Block Printed fabric with western wear has a uniquely contemporary Indian edge.

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

Perfect for the winter coming soon. Make sure to visit our 7th Annual Handmade Collective and get your own bunch of ME2WE goodies. 

Community based organization- Avani has collaborated with Mr. Vishnu Kumar Patwa, a thread worker from Rajasthan, who specializes in creating beautiful tassled items. Combining that with Avani’s handwoven scarves, stoles and shawls, they had a winning combo.

Even though the two crafts were different in the sense of their final product, they are a good fit together since, the raw material used is the same (Yarns) and final products completely complement each other. While Avani creates textile products using handspun and handwoven yarn, Mr. Patwa creates thread Jewelry and other items using that yarn – a great adornment for any scarf, stole or dupatta.

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.

Since at AVANI, they are particular about using only Natural yarn, naturally dyed, they also wanted the tassles to be made of the same material, keeping their final product true to their sensibility. The main challenge for Avani in this endeavor was finding the right contact and communication. Since Avani is situated in a remote location and so far away from Rajasthan, communication and timely delivery of the samples always posed a challenge.

All images © 2016-2017 A Hundred Hands.