Seeds of Thought

Textile designer Meera Narula's work explores a traditional North Indian embroidery technique known as 'Phool Patti ka Kaam' or 'Aligarh Kaam'. This delicate, white-work appliqué relies on miniscule pieces of cloth, which are deftly cut and shaped into petals, and assembled into floral and linear patterns on translucent white cloth. Like other types of work in shades of white, this form of embroidery was best suited to the fine muslin garments worn in summer in the Indian plains. She creates a sequence of eight panels that recall the exquisite scale and craftsmanship of such traditional work.

Beginning with a blank canvas, representing the purity and innocence of childhood, the panels are arranged in a narrative thatis at once intimate and universal, which she describes in her own words:
'The second frame takes us into the next stage, where the mind is specked with a few seeds that may have cropped from within'. 

 'Frame three takes us into that time when social routines, disciplinary instructions, institutional rules, and academic curricula,the otherwise translucent fabric of mind gets moiréd'.

'In adolescence, the free flowing mind-space shrinks rapidly and a pattern of definitive thoughts and beliefs seem to have found new ground'. 'The mind-space of the artist in her twenties looks busier
than a checkerboard game'.

'Middle age is fraught with demands on the self, seeds of thought seem like fickle specks, with the exception of few inner beliefs that shine through it all'. 'Past that, the struggle to free the mind
might continue'.

'Finally, the residual fabric of the mind-space is dotted with fragmented memories of times well-spent, and of people dearly loved and the inner essence of a life's journey'.