Feb 14, 2012
“The Body as a Canvas: From the Mughal Paisley to the Hindu Tilakas. The collection is inspired by the decadence and dust of India. The human body has long been understood as a medium of art and religious expression. Here, a simple sphere or line are used to tell stories, from recognizing states of higher consciousness to understanding ones own social identity. This concept of body art, or Talikas, is deeply rooted in Indian culture. For example, as a means to protect the beauty, innocence, and appeal of unmarried Indian women, a black Talikas is used to ward off evil, while red is used to signify marriage. The Sadhus of India use ash and other colored pigments to decorate their bodies in very elaborate motifs from daubs to dashes, to very intricate swirls. The paisley is the mother of Indian design. Utilizing these designs, most wardrobes of the royal families were embroidered with silver and gold threading, as well as precious jewels.”-from the notes given out at the runway show.
“My prints were designed by dabbing white-out on black boards and printed in Switzerland. The paisleys, Tilakas, and swirl motifs are used as inspiration for all my metallic embroidery detail. It has taken hundreds of artisans and three months to put this together. This collection is blend of various ancient artistic techniques used on both bodies and textiles, coming together in a vision fit for the 21st Century”-Naeem Khan.
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