Many crafts, especially the smaller and lesser known ones are slowly dying with shift to technology and mass production. However, there are still a few who have managed to retain this legacy and devoted their lives to sustaining such crafts. One such individual is Mohan Singh, now in his late 80s, who fixes eyeglasses. Mohan...
Kashmir is well-known for its handicrafts, which include finer elements of design and craft like embroidery, pashmina weaving, carpet weaving and intricate wood carving—but 23 year-old Aziz-ul-Rehman from Gulab Bagh area of Srinagar has mastered the art of making various decorative items by carving animal bones. Aziz, who is studying in the Department of Fisheries,...
For many years the words embroidery and tapestry have caused a bit of confusion. The word tapestry was originally applied to a fabric where the pattern was woven into the fabric as it was being made. It is a form of textile art, traditionally woven by hand on a loom. Tapestry is weft-faced weaving, in...
Walnut wood carving is an ornamental and delicate craft process that is unique to Kashmir due to the concentration of walnut trees in this region. The raw material used for the fine woodcarving of Kashmir is obtained from walnut tree locally known as Doon Kul and is cut only once it matures to an age...
Khatamband is an art of making ceilings by fitting small pieces of wood (preferably walnut or deodar wood) in geometrical patterns. These are entirely hand crafted and fitted with tongue and groove joints, without use of any nails. Processed wood is cut into panels and fixed onto the ceiling in floral and geometrical designs. As...
Kashmiri carpets are the hand-knotted categories of carpets and are made by tying knots. These carpets are made in a karkhanas where the skilled weavers work. The origin of hand knotted carpets locally known as Kal baffi dates back to the 15th century and is said that the skilled craftsmen were brought to Kashmir by...
Shahnawaz Ahmad Sofi, son of Gul Mohammad Sofi, a resident of Rathpora Eidgah Srinagar, completed his graduation in 2003 from the Institute of Music and Fine Arts and used to make portraits and was passionate about colours. After his graduation he took up his old family business of carpets (since 1950s) and decided to revive...
Farooq Ahmed, of downtown Srinagar, who has mastered the fusion art of the traditional making Kashmiri Namda with nuno felting has taken it a step further to create silk scarves with nuno felting technique. Farooq Ahmed is the only artist in India who has merged these two techniques to produce Namdas, silk scarves etc. It...
Kashmir has been known for its Namda rugs made of sheep wool, which came in to Kashmir from Central Asia. Kashmiri Namda rugs are non-woven rugs developed by highly skilled artisans in Kashmir using the felting technique. These floor coverings are primarily made of pure sheep wool, as wool has a natural property to felt....
Chain Stitch, known as Jalakdozi in Kashmiri is a chain stitch embroidery done on rugs called Namda made of sheep wool. Namdas came in to Kashmir from Central Asia, however, there was a locally crafted rug called gabba, an embroidered Kashmiri rug. Made by re-purposing old woollen blankets and waste cloth, a gabba is used...
