Exhibition Visit to Red Lilies, Water Birds 2024 from ICAT, Bangalore

ICAT Design and Media College, Department of Fashion and Apparel Design organized an exhibition visit to “Red Lilies, Water Birds — The Saree in Nine Stories” presented by The Registry of Sarees. The exhibition featured a selection of 108 sarees and draped garments – narrated through 9 themes – which have been sourced by The Registry of Sarees over the last 5 years. They represent a period of almost a century, from the late 19th to the early 21st, and comprise textiles from some of the most prominent handloom centres of India, including Kanchipuram, Venkatagiri, Chanderi, Paithan, Patan, Varanasi, Murshidabad and Sambalpur. Divided into nine stories illustrating cross-cultural currents as the textiles may be understood through specific design elements and techniques, it provoked an examination of definitions and the regional associations through which students could understand Indian garments today. The exhibition has attempted to the students to contextualize the conversation within other historical narratives relevant to the production of textiles in India.