offered as a complete collection to curators and collectors
Most of the 49 pieces in this group I collected more than 25 years ago in Indonesia. These are divided by ‘taste’ of the region they were found, with Sulawesi and Sumatra being of primary importance. The collection also includes textiles found in, or to the taste of, Thailand, Japan, Sri Lanka, Tibet, Persia, and Europe, plus an exceptional block printed cloth from Kashgar, West China. Added to this, is an extremely rare group of historic fragments from Fustat, Egypt, that came out more than a century ago.
It was my goal to bring together a survey of the range of Indian Trade Cloths (ITC), inclusive of early Gujarati block prints and hand-painted mordant and resist dyed cloths from the Coromandel Coast. Created in India for export often more than 250 years ago, these textiles served as currency in exchange for spices and other trade goods and are now recognized as important aesthetic and art historical documents of world exploration and trade.
Islamic Sumatran textiles are a rich blend of indigenous animist traditions, Hindu-Buddhist influences, and Islamic artistic principles, characterized by opulent gold thread (songket) and intricate motifs. They are profoundly cultural, representing status and custom (adat), particularly in Minangkabau and Lampung, where textiles often serve ceremonial roles.
The spread of Islam simplified some, leading to a shift away from human depictions toward geometric, floral, and vegetal patterns. Common designs include the bamboo sprout (pucuk rebung) and Jasmine (bunga melor).
Islamic Sumatran textiles are a rich blend of indigenous animist traditions, Hindu-Buddhist influences, and Islamic artistic principles, characterized by opulent gold thread (songket) and intricate motifs. They are profoundly cultural, representing status and custom (adat), particularly in Minangkabau and Lampung, where textiles often serve ceremonial roles.
The spread of Islam simplified some, leading to a shift away from human depictions toward geometric, floral, and vegetal patterns. Common designs include the bamboo sprout (pucuk rebung) and Jasmine (bunga melor).
In the recent publication, Textiles of Indonesia, Valerie Hector informs us that shells have been used in Southeast Asia as both ornament and currency for Millenia. Oliva shell beads were found in an archaeology site of Timor dating to circa 35,000 years ago and Nassarius shell beads were found in the same area dating to 4500 BCE.
Despite the emergence of the glass trade bead industry some two thousand years ago, hand fashioned shell disks continued to serve as a primary way of storing value and signaling prestige up through the 20th century for many ethnic groups of Southeast Asia and Oceania. This was owing to the extraordinary labor intensiveness in shell bead creation, and the principle that the further from the sea, the greater the value for all artifacts made from shell.
This small exhibition features shell artwork from some of the most legendary headhunting peoples of Asia,
including the greatest shell-decorated garment in the world from the Atayal of Taiwan; a blouse decorated with mother of pearl shell beads from the B’laan of Mindanao, Philippines; an early warrior’s cape from the Naga with appliqued cowrie shells, making a human figure amid circles; and an extraordinary Naga necklace fashioned from giant clam, both from the northeastern highlands of India.
It is a pleasure to share this deeply meaningful group with you!
We are pleased to present a rare and exquisite collection of select objects from across the globe. Highlights include two stunning ship Palepai; Fijian war clubs Fiji, Polynesia, probably early voyager period, circa 1830; Java Mask; Charming canopa votive containers from Peru. See the collection in person in Santa Fe, August 8-11
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