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 FASHION BASICS – JURY BRIEF

Fashion in context to slow fashion and craft

-       a Case Study

Yashasavi Sinha

Year I (Semester I)

B.Des (Fashion Communication)

Fashion Basics – Jury Brief

Fashion in context to slow fashion and craft – a Case Study

Introduction:

Fashion world today is faced with two opposing concepts of Fast Fashion and its Slow variant. On the one hand, Fast Fashion denotes lower-quality, low-priced, mass-produced and machine-made garments that lose their colour, shape and texture after a few washes, quickly end up in landfills, have adverse environmental effects and are characterized by unfair treatment of worker. On the other hand, Slow Fashion garments are made by hand, consume time to produce, use artistic talent, have better quality, long life and are priced higher. Slow fashion is characterized by use of fibres from organic and recycled materials, less chemicals, dyes, energy, less resource, less waste and minimal impact. Often designs are simpler and less trendy, so they don’t fall out of fashion so quickly. Slow Fashion is getting people’s attention due to growing awareness on the impact of the fashion industry.

For a better understanding, one could compare the two concepts with fast food and healthier food. Fast food is quick to make in bulk and often tasty, but it’s known to be unhealthy. Fast Fashion is the equivalent when it comes to clothes: very fashionable, and often extremely cheap, but it is not healthy for the environment and a major contributor to climate change. On the other hand, Slow Fashion is the equivalent of healthier eating: often more complex in production and therefore usually more expensive, but, like healthier food is better for the body, it’s far more climate-friendly and healthier for the environment.

Slow Fashion is a worldwide movement of designing, creating, and buying garments for quality and longevity. It encourages slower production schedules, fair wages, lower carbon footprints, and (ideally) zero waste. I have been a strong votary for Slow Fashion and as a son of the soil, I would like to showcase the craft of Madhubani Painting, a traditional craft form of Bihar.

History about the craft:

ithila painting) is a style of Indian painting, practiced in the Mithila region of Bihar. Folklore has it that Mithila painting originated when King Janak called artist to create paintings at the time of Sita’s marriage to Lord Rama. It went through various phases of history including the medieval period however, very little is known of this period.

The art form was brought to public attention in 1934 when the worst earthquake occurred in Bihar and regions of Nepal that caused widespread destruction. While taking stock of the damage caused by the natural disaster, William G. Archer, the British Colonial officer of Madhubani district, came across these paintings on the interior walls of houses of the region. He was greatly impressed by the art and went on to publish several articles and pictures of these paintings to the outer world.

The craft has remained confined to a compact geographical area and the skills have been passed on through centuries, the content and the style have largely remained the same.

Mithila paintings received official recognition in 1969 when a renowned artist, Sita Devi received award from the Government of Bihar. The other prominent artists from this field who brought pride to the state include, Jagdamba Devi the first artist to receive Padma Shri in 1975, Ganga Devi, Mahasundari Devi who introduced cloth painting in 1978, Yamuna Devi, Shanti Devi, etc. The latest award was given to Godavari Dutta who was awarded the Padma Shri in January 2019.

Artisans and craft:

Madhubani paintings mostly depict people and their association with nature and scenes and deities from the ancient epics. Painting themes mainly revolved around gods and goddesses, animals, characters from mythology. Besides, natural objects like the sun, the moon, and religious plants like tulsi are also widely painted, along with scenes from the royal court and social events like weddings. Its main feature is the line drawings filled in by bright colours which have high contrasts and very intricate details and patterns. Generally, no space is left empty; the gaps are filled by paintings of flowers, animals, birds, and even geometric designs. 

Madhubani paintings use two-dimensional imagery and the colors used are derived from plants. Colours for these paintings represent religious symbolism. Artists initially used vegetable dyes. Lamp soot served as a source of black, white from powdered rice, green was made from the leaves of the apple tree, blue from the seeds of indigo and yellow was extracted from jasmine flower, bark of peepal was boiled to make saffron colour, red was made from kusum flower and sandal wood. The paintings were made durable and bright by mixing gum with colour.

The paintings was traditionally created on freshly plastered mud walls and floors of huts, but now they are also done on cloth, handmade paper and canvas. Madhubani Paintings have traditionally two forms: Bhittichitra (paintings made on a mud-wall) and Aripana (on the ground-soil). Bhittichitra is made on the mud-walls of the houses specifically at three places: the room of the family God/ Goddess, the room of the newly wedded couple and the drawing-room. This painting is done with fingers and other tools like twigs, brushes, nib-pens, and matchsticks and using natural dyes and pigments. It is characterised by geometrical patterns and vibrant colors and ritual content for various occasions, such as birth or marriage, and festivals, such as Holi, Upanayana, Durga Puja, etc.

Madhubani paintings have been done traditionally by woman of Mithilanchal with the skill being passed on from one generation to another. Mainly attributed to the upper caste in the beginning, this was later taken up by women across all castes.

Values and impact of craft:

Madhubani paintings are among the most famous paintings in the world. This popular art expresses the creativity and sensitivity of its people. Like any folk art, it also shows the psychology of the society to which it belongs; it reflects the morals, values ​​and customs of the region.

The art form has helped women in this region to empower themselves, achieve financial independence and thereby emancipation in the social status of women.

There are many organizations which provide strength to village artists with their paintings and helped preserve the traditional art through various self-sustainable initiatives. The art and artists however, suffered greatly due to lack of commercial value and cheap duplication.

Change is inevitable and like any other field, Madhubani painting has also adapted itself to new ideas, new mediums, etc. Besides, the use of synthetic colours and modern round brushes are replacing the cotton tipped bamboo sticks and stiff twigs that used to serve as brushes earlier.

Although the paintings are traditionally made by women, men are becoming more and more involved in order to cater to the market demand. Further, the traditional process of making this art has also been modified. As soon as the artisans discovered the commercial potential of these paintings and the fancy of urban dwellers for this art form, they started adapting themselves to accomplish the paintings on textiles, paper, cloth and other materials.

Current status & Suggestions:

New age designers have delved into creating fusions of Madhubani painting and western designs. Besides, recent initiatives taken by the Government, NGOs and cultural organisations, have helped Madhubani art earn appreciation and enjoy popularity and recognition not only across the country but worldwide as well. The art form has instilled interest in art lovers from various countries like USA, UK, Australia, Russia, etc. These paintings are displayed in several museums not only all over the country but worldwide. Tokamachi Hills in Japan have a museum fully dedicated to Mithila paintings.

In the field of fashion, many designers have launched Madhubani designs collection such as traditional outfits which are beautifully designed in Madhubani art. Patterns from this ancient art are being designed on various other products such as bags, bedspread, cushion covers, mouse pads, etc. These paintings have today become an integral part of modern decor. All this has ensured wide range acceptance and popularity worldwide.

Though the art form has become quite popular, I feel it still has immense potential to be showcased as an ambassador for the Slow Fashion movement. As can be seen from above, Madhubani paintings have all the elements and features that comprise Slow Fashion. Madhubani prints on sarees, especially on tassar silk, stoles, scarves, dupattas, kurtis, etc. are already quite popular. However, there is tremendous scope to work on further marketing initiatives leading to still wider acceptance and market. A closely co-ordinated effort by the Government, Artists, Designers, manufacturers, etc. can go a long way in achieving the objective. Slow Fashion as the buzzword is here to stay and Madhubani painting on sarees, etc. can help us achieve it.