INDIA : LAND OF HEART AND SOUL

© Fiona Wright

Ozquilt Network Newsletter #52, June 2004

Last year was a big year for me, a time of so many changes. My boys are now so big they need to bend down to kiss me. As a Steiner school teacher I've just completed seven years taking my class through the primary, it was time to send them on to high school. Menopause was starting to stir up my hormones, and the sheer exhaustion of wearing many hats all at once— full time work, the joys of parenthood all alone, ticking along in a Masters in Visual Arts on the weekends— was all getting a bit much!! All in all a time of many changes and rather than decide to go with the flow gracefully I did something a little wild.

Without consultation (with myself, that is) I went out and bought a ticket to India . Always wanted to go there, never had the chance; twenty years with kids instead. I was so  busy at the time, I put the ticket in the drawer and just tried to keep up with the mad rushes of life. December started speeding through, school finished, the boys went off to their Dad and I had a ticket and no plans — Oh boy! I booked a room for the first few nights in Delhi and thought that's it the rest will need to look after itself.

Tears leaving Sydney airport - what had I done?  I was so exhausted on the plane I fell asleep during the lunch! Finally Delhi Airport — think Kings Cross Station— think Kings Cross Station on a bad day and you are getting close. Delhi airport is not attractive but I just felt so happy from the time we touched down. WOW!  I had made it— but  where? Delhi was blanketed in a thick fog, a sea of glowing orange lights, cars and traffic that you can not imagine, a traffic hold up, and when we finally passed it was a huge cow  on the main road. Oh my Goodness! In fact I'm sure the taxi driver thought those  werethe only words of English I knew. Exhausted, landing in the middle of the night I thought I had emerged into some surreal dream world but the place did not seem scary,  rather exciting and friendly. Don't worry, I pinched myself a good few times on that long taxi ride wondering if I was mad.

Things just kept getting better. From what I have seen, India is one big, BUSY place but rather than everyone being in their own little shell, it seems very friendly; there is an open curiosity where ever you go. I found the way to cope with this was to be friendly in return but keep things a little formal, and if I did not want something, to politely and firmly say no (all those years of school teaching and single parenthood have come in useful. You do need to put a firm resolve under your pleasant exterior or you are ignored).

To cut a long story short, it appeared getting around would be difficult. Busy season, I had not booked ahead etc, etc. so I ended up hiring a personal driver. I know that sounds like the height of decadence and it is in one way, you are so well looked after! But it is not that expensive in dollar terms especially when you realise what a breeze life becomes. My driver, Prveen, looked after me so well, picking me up each morning with a smile. He knew where all the tourist places were, so I got to see so much more than I would have on my own, and as he came to understand my special interest in textiles took me to little places I would never have found on my own. Driving through Rajastan we could stop when ever I wanted - little villages, camels by the road side, little off the beaten track spots, flowers on a shrine, elephants enthusiastically running home through Jaipur after a day of taking people up to Amber Fort. "No problem, Madam", and a big smirk every time I thanked him for his patience: "My pleasure." It  felt genuine.

So I had a good holiday. Why am I writing to you guys? I found textile heaven! India is the birthplace of textile production and it is still going strong. The streets are a visual delight of colour and fabric. The bazaars brim with sari shops, braid stalls, hand made books, leather (from camels) shoes and bags, glorious pashimas from Kashmir, silk, hand printed cottons the list is endless and mind boggling. Prveen again, "Madam, in India anything is possible." and I'm sure he is right. You could take a pocket full of money and enter a shoppers' delight but as a creative artist, I think it offers so much, much more.

The is so much to study everywhere - colour, dyes traditional and modern, block printing, weaving, the intricate braid techniques for camel halters etc. All the old buildings are beautifully, artfully, tastefully decorated and still standing up well. Just looking at one wall of one Fort (interpret Fort as something like a massive, stone medieval type castle, with huge walls and a sumptuous palace inside) is a whole lesson on texture, colour, patterning and more.

From the magnificence of a royal palace to a simple block printed cotton covered quilt in a Jaipur bazaar there is so much to see and be inspired by. From a view of the Monsoon Palace perched on a mountain pinnacle over Udaipur to a woman in a glowing red sari, elegantly floating down a dusty desert road, India is a land of visual feasts and inspiration.

If you feel like being wild, try India . It is like no other place on Earth. The people are open hearted and friendly, especially as you step that little bit out of the tourist trail, the country is spectacular and the culture so vivid and rich. I haven't even mentioned the wonderful stories in India 's colourful and long history. AND with the textiles for education, inspiration and acquisition you can't go far wrong.

As you may guess I'm hooked and heading back again in October (I do have the whole year off for study leave and figure starting off wild should continue. It is OK for life to be fun!) If any one would like some tips from my limited but growing experience I'd be only too happy to pass on anything I have picked up along the way.

Fiona Wright © 2004