Ajrakh is the name of a cloth that has been blockprinted in the traditional method using natural dyes such as indigo, madder, and pomegranate. The ajrakh process is a long one, involving several steps of washing and scouring the cloth, then additional steps to mordant the cloth, and still more steps as each colour is either directly blockprinted or resist blockprinted with natural dyes. The order is of utmost importance as the layers of colour are built up and the traditional geometric ajrakh patterns emerge.

Producing an ajrakh involves entire communities: block cutters, dye farmers (for the many natural dyeplants), cloth merchants, and of course, the ajrakh craftspeople themselves (those who mordant, print, dye and design the cloth). While we assist in procurement of raw materials, maintaining high standards of quality, and product finishing, designs remain in the realm of the craftsperson.

Jabbar and Adam Khatri's lecture and exhibition are this week.

PURCHASE LECTURE TICKETS

EXHIBITION R.S.V.P.

LECTURE

Thursday September 14th

$15 - Netloft Granville Island - 7:45pm (doors open at 7:30)

Traditional ajrakh block-printing is one of the most iconic crafts to survive into the twenty-first century. But ajrakh, as practiced by the Khatris of the Kutch Desert, has done much more than just survive; it has flourished and expanded to become a craft with a keen sense of tradition and a vision for how this tradition can be taken into the future by a new generation of ajrakh artisans.

PURCHASE LECTURE TICKETS HERE

EXHIBITION ONE NIGHT ONLY

Saturday September 16th

Free Admission - Maiwa East  1310 Odlum Drive - 7:30pm Opening

SPECIAL EVENT WITH DEMONSTRATIONS, WINE, AND APPETIZERS

-- ALL ITEMS IN THE EXHIBIT (AND MORE) WILL BE FOR SALE --

Join us for an exhibition of ajrakh masterworks. Jabbar Khatri and his son Adam are members of the famous Khatri block-printing family, a family that can trace its artisan heritage back over nine generations. See the finest examples of printing and technique worked in natural dyes on cotton—double-sided ajrakh with expansive circular designs. The pieces are truly unique and cannot be seen anywhere else. 

R.S.V.P. TO THE EXHIBITION HERE