In anticipation of a special workshop with Dr. Anu H. Gupta, M.Sc., Ph.D., Professor of Textiles and Anthropology at Panjab University and co-author of Phulkari from Punjab: Embroidery in Translation, Niyogi Books, 2019, I’m sharing an introduction to the Phulkari tradition of embroidery from Punjab, India. 

Phulkari has been an art form and means of expression for women, possibly back to the 15th century. The first written documentation of the work dates to the 17th century. It has been practiced by women of several religions: Muslims, Hindus, Christians, and Sikhs (who consider the Punjab their holy land). The word phulkari translates loosely as “floral work” and incorporates plants, animals, and geometric motifs, orally passed down from generation to generation to create young women’s trousseaux. Becoming a skilled embroiderer was a necessary part of a girl’s education, “to prove her feminine worth,” however, women also used the practice as an outlet for emotions they couldn’t otherwise express. Girls would stitch their identities and dreams into their work. 

Phulkari work has changed through time, in motifs and techniques, beginning with adaptations made to satisfy British colonial tastes in the 1800s and then changes after the1947 Partition of India and Pakistan (which split the Punjab region). In the workshop with Dr. Gupta, we’ll learn both the original counted thread work technique made with a darning stitch from the reverse and the modern method using a traced pattern. Hope you can join us! 

Sources:

Phulkari from Punjab review, thewire.in
philamuseum.org/exhibitions/857.html
utsavpedia.com
sarajo.com
bbc.com
wikipedia.com