Shipibo Weaving and Song

From Indigenous

The Shipibo Indians in the Amazon Rainforest are known for their amazing, psychedelic textiles. Did you know that these textiles are actually musical?

Cannabis: Drugs and Textiles

This was meant to be a brief overview of the origin and spread of the use of Cannabis sativa for textiles and as a drug. Good lord! There's SO MUCH STUFF! Them ancient folk liked their hemp! I'm going to try to put it in a nutshell and break it up into sections, or this could go on forever. Eventually, I would like to investigate a correlation between the textiles and the drug, if there is any, in a sacred context.

Cave painting from Kyushu Island, Japan, dating to Jomon Period (14,000 to 300 BC). This is thought to be the earliest artwork in Japan.

 

Featured Textile: Kutch Dowry Bag

Many of the textiles I admire are far beyond my price range, which has been slightly disheartening for me. I asked Jack Cassin for his advice on starting a collection with little money. He told me to choose what appeals to me, and suggested that I take a look at Kutch textiles. I'm so glad I took his advice!

As soon as I saw this dowry bag offered by Ethnic Indian Art, I knew I'd found my piece. 

This is a Kutch Rabari Banjara Gypsy traditional dowry bag from the mid 19th century. It measures 20 inches by 33 inches. The bag was created in Saurashtra Gujarat, India by artists of the Kathi tribe.The bags are embroidered by the bride-to-be and presented to the groom's family prior to the wedding.