This art installation in Bengaluru pays tribute to weavers and textiles in a new and an interesting way

Maya Angelou once said that light and shadow are the opposite sides of the same coin. Echoing the poet’s words in her ongoing two-part show Weaving Light, artist Archana Hande masterfully blurs the lines between light and shadow.

Using a timer light, she orchestrates a magical dance of shadows, transforming the space into a multi-layered installation. But this isn’t just a play of light and dark; it’s a subtle homage to Bengaluru’s textile artisans, the ones who’ve migrated to the city in the hope of a brighter future.

The undisputed stars of the show? Jacquard cards — those once utilitarian tools, transcend their previous purpose. Archana breathes new life into them, transforming them into luminous bricks. Light spills through the meticulously punched holes, casting stunning patterns — a modern echo of the intricate designs these very cards once controlled.

“Weaving Light is not just an idea; it is a process. It’s the journey and experience of the artisans I have constantly been communicating with,” opens Archana Hande. “I am weaving their story through shadows,” she adds. Archana, who has been researching and closely following Jacquard weaving in Bengaluru for over twenty years, intensified her focus on this textile traditions since 2009.

From the displacement of the weaver community to the development of newer technologies, she attempts to translate it all into her installation. Speaking about the brick-like structures that she has created using the punching cards, she tells us that she was looking to make a space out of these materials directly sourced from the artisans.

She believes that this is her dialogue expressed through the cards while empowering people to weave their own stories from the interplay of light and shadow.

After sourcing the punching cards, stitching and putting them together, Archana has been experimenting with the installation for quite some time now.

“I have put together something that’s more of an experiential piece,” she shares. What people get to witness is a testament to time — the evolution from handcrafted textiles to digital production, all set in the backdrop of the ever-shifting narrative of Bengaluru. The artist also goes on to tell us that this is not where she intends to stop with Weaving Light.

“I have two more variations in mind,” she reveals, eager to bring her complete vision to life. As she looks at the future of traditional Indian crafts, Archana feels uncertain. Being a believer in the fact that an ending is the birth of something new, her hope lies in the empowerment of skilled workers. However, she treads a careful line. The artist fears that preserving a tradition might also mean stagnating it.

“Just like I want to evolve and grow with time, so should the traditional ways of the art of craft,” she concludes.

Entry free. April 12, 10.30 am to 6 pm. At Gallery Sumukha, Wilson Garden.

Written by Subhashini Ramasamy

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