Textile Details

'Civil War', by Mrs. Saroj Gujarat, India. (Photo: Colin Peck)

Mrs. Saroj is recognised as one of the most gifted fabric picture makers in India and uses her remarkable gift to earn money to help the family survive. Her work is not typical of any Indian folk tradition and words used to describe it are "bold", "full of life", "free" and "imaginative". Without previous sketching she cuts the textile pieces and tacks these immediately unto the base folding in the seams. She does not correct it by trimming which is why her pictures appear free and bold. She did not do any creative work until 1966 when she met and was encouraged by an Indian artist curator and lecturer. He requested her to follow her unique style and not copy anything from other sources such as postcards and calendars.

Her wall hanging is made of two panels: civil war and living together. As a Hindu of low caste from Ahmedabad, she has had experience of civil unrest in the frequent local clashes between castes and also between Hindus and Muslims. The first picture shows inter-religious fighting. Hindus are represented by tilak marks on their foreheads and Muslims by green turbans on their heads. On the centre right a woman with a water carrier on her head is being attacked by two boys with bloody sticks. The man in the centre, surrounded by boys may be her husband. The man at the right seems to be throwing a large stone. Young boys wielding bloodied knives are also visible. The house at the far right is empty, the family having had to flee for their life.

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