The Siddi quilt exhibit was one of my main reasons for attending QuiltCon this year. I have been interested in the Indian quilting traditions for several years and recently ran into an article in Uppercase Magazine (issue 30) that talks about the Siddi quilt tradition specifically (by Makale Faber Cullen). This exhibit was coordinated by Henry Drewal and is of quilts from Karnataka and the Siddi Women's Quilt Cooperative. I also attended a very interesting lecture about the Quilts of India by Shruti Dandekar (@shrutinow) who has traveled in this area of India and met some of the makers.
The Siddis are Indians of East African descent. Their quilts are distinctive in their use of color and the technique used in which patches of repurposed clothing are placed over a cotton sari foundation and hand stitched with a running stitch. They work from the outer border toward the middle.
Clara Kistoj Mainalli
Anonymous quilter, Gunjarati village
Nannima Giannisab Kendalgiri
One of my favorite details of these quilts is a tradition with these quilters. The phulas are the small folded triangles of fabric that adorn the corners. Most of the time it seems that there is just one of these at each corner of the quilt. In a couple of cases there were three at each corner. They are sometimes described as flowers and are considered the final flourish. A quilt would be "naked" without them.
Mary Mariyani
Aminabi Giuyavati and Bibijan Babusab Gujavati Mainalli
I hope you enjoyed these as much as I did. These were all offered for sale at the show, but you can also find them for sale on Henry Drewal's website. Next time I'll be back with a couple of other special exhibits from the show and then I'll get to the main show quilts.