
I grew up in a country where every 16 minutes a girl is raped.
I grew up in a country where marital rape isn’t a crime.
I grew up in a world where most women who are raped, groped, abused is by someone they already know.
I grew up in a world where consent is questionable.
I grew up in a world where the definition of a woman restricted to having a vagina.
Me; like most women*, immigrate with the hope of having an equitable life.
Or simply, a life of choice -
Choice of being whoever it is we are,
Choice of breaking away from a patriarchal society,
Choice of not having to fight for the most basic rights.
When the Supreme Court of the USA overturned Roe V. Wade, all the curbed outrage led to the conceptualization and creation of these Kalamkari pieces.
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The designs feature the dichotomy of women and men, with depictions of the womb and female reproductive system, amidst which the (at times nefarious and predatory) presence of men emerges.
Using inspirations from nature as motifs, the pieces explore and express the political, emotional and spiritual state of women. That the control to our bodies is even being debated, much less usurped by those in power - is something that I continue to express through my textile art.
These pieces are for the woman, who gave me the courage to speak up.
These pieces are for all the women, who give each other the courage and continue to fight no matter what.
- Nikita
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The base textile is handspun Eri silk, handwoven in Assam, India.
The co-pieces are painted using natural dyes taking over 3 months, by artisans of KalamCreations by Mamata Reddy in Sri Kalahasti, India.
Price on Request
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*trans women are women.