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Iconographic Meaning

Design linked to fertility and a woman’s role in the family.

History Of Use

Woven textiles in Bhutan, like this one, are intended to be used as clothing, as part of the national dress for women, the kira. In 1989 the Bhutan government decreed that national dress must be worn in public. The kira is worn wrapped around the body, folded into a wide pleat in the front, fastened at both shoulders with round silver ornaments and tightly belted at the waist. The length – to the ankle, to the top of the foot or to the ground – corresponds to the social position of the wearer, the higher the class the longer the hemline. A long sleeved blouse is worn under the kira, and a short outer jacket with long sleeves is worn over the top, along with a with a patterned shoulder cloth, either draped around the neck or over the left shoulder. Weaving is an ancient and legendary craft in Bhutan (especially in the eastern and central regions), associated with women and taught at home and at specialized schools and studios located in towns and cities. The ability to design and weave creatively is a valued skill among women; folklore links weaving with fertility and a woman’s reproductive role in the family. In today’s world, weaving can provide a source of income, particularly for the most skillful weavers. The most valued weavings are labour intensive and elaborately designed, with brightly coloured, intricate, overall patterning applied with a discontinuous supplementary weft.

Narrative

Purchased by Marta Friesen while leading a tour in Bhutan.

Description

Large, rectangular, hand-woven, multi-coloured, multi-patterned textile (kira), worn by women as a wrap dress, part of the national dress of Bhutan. Woven in three long, narrow panels, which have been stitched together edge-to-edge, matching the patterns accurately on the seam lines. The long vertical edges are woven in colourful red, green, blue and yellow stripes, forming a 13.5 cm decorative border on each side; narrow vertical stripes (0.75 cm to 1.5 cm) of blue, red and mixed colours appear at irregular intervals across the textile. On an off-white background between the coloured stripes, are many multi-coloured, intricate, geometric patterns that have been applied horizontally with a discontinuous supplementary weft technique, forming a wide variety of motifs and border designs that float on the surface and have the appearance of embroidery. Only the ends of the supplementary-weft designs show on the reverse side. Red is the predominant colour, but a whole range of primary and secondary colours appear in the designs. Many loose ends and unattached threads show on both sides of the textile. The warp threads are twisted to form a short fringe at each end.