Folk Arts of India - Embroidery : Phulkari

India is a land of diverse art forms matured over millennia by constant practice and use. Her warm weather, cycle of seasons and vivacious flora and fauna inspires her people to create vibrant art forms. In India art is an integral part of living that is woven into every day activities. It is not something to be placed on a pedestal and observed in galleries. In this series of articles, we introduce some of the wonderful traditional arts from India that have inspired our artists.

Akash Kandil

Phulkari

Phulkari for some time now is being used in home furnishings specially wall hangings, sofa throws and other soft furnishings. Phulkari is traditionally done on a handspun khadi cloth with simple darning stitches using the un spun silk floss yarn called 'pat'. Single strand threads are used for the purpose.

Simple stitches in the adept hands make it one of the most sought after embroidery craft. Shading and variation is often obtained by the using horizontal, vertical or diagonal stitches. There are a variety of phulkari styles used for different occasions and purposes.

This artwork is by one of the Heart2Heart founding artist, Sandhya Kiran.