EXPLORING THE HANDCRAFTED TRADITION OF BLOCK PRINTING
It’s no secret that India is an all-embracing confluence of rich traditions and customs and at its heart lies a treasure trove of art, architecture, dance, music, flora, and fauna. The finesse of craftsmanship, the opulence of vividly colorful silk and cotton textiles, ethnicity of accessories, bespoke fabrics that embody the various art forms have come down as a heritage from ancient times and have been perfected and kept alive through generations.
One such craft, which holds its place of pride for India is the age-old craft of dying and coloring a fabric using wooden blocks which has been mastered by utilizing naturally sourced plant dyes, particularly eco-friendly mordants that aid a dye to attach to a material. What originated in Rajasthan, was quickly adopted by Gujarat and later was practiced by many Indian states like Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, and Maharashtra. A unique blend of using mordants, stamping, printing, and dyeing fabrics led different artisans to fabricate distinctively and one-of-a-kind designs. The craft at its heart is labor-intensive and is considered one of the oldest and the slowest forms of textile printing.
Block carving is one of the primal and initial steps in the block printing process. Teak blocks are carved by artisans using hammers, chisels, and drills to allow intricate, delicate designs in detail and then dipped and soaked in mustard oil for 10-15 days to strengthen the wood and prevent any cracking when exposed to dry conditions. The addition of holes is also done to allow the wood to breathe and extend its life by a few decades.
The next step involves preparing the handwoven fabric that needs to be block printed. It is bleached, washed to get rid of starch, and then stretched over a printing table ensuring there are no creases that can sabotage the printing hand block process, and is secured using pins. The colors are pre-mixed and kept ready along with a liquid made of glue and eco-friendly pigment binder to set up a soft base for the color, enabling an even spread of color on the block. First, the blocks are dipped in the desired outline color evened out in a tray. The block is precisely placed and pressed down hard on the fabric to create the desired impression and then other colored blocks are used to fill in the outline. Once done, the fabric is dried in the sun and rolled in a newspaper to prevent the fabric from sticking and forming layers. After drying, it is steamed in a big boiler for 4-6 hours, washed in water, and again dried in sun to fasten the colors. To finish up, the fabric is then ironed.
This art form has reached its highest visual expression on sarees, bedsheets, dhotis, and almost every form of apparel you can imagine triumphs by uniqueness in its tiny variations and imperfections created by the human hands.
And having grown up in a family of artisans, that once worked to promote this beautiful craft, my paintings are just a small attempt to honor the master craftsmanship involved behind this genius interplay of handicraft and vivid colors. The painting above is a reminder of the visions and designs that were once brought to life in my grandfather’s workshop and an exploration into myriad intricate blocks that created these unique prints on textiles that I proudly call my heirloom. At the center of this, is craftsmanship that resonates with the sheer imperfections brought about by the human touch that lies in this process of creation, and yet creating a coveted collectible for years to come.
