TEXTILE ARTS OF CENTRAL ASIA

The textile arts of Central Asia are rich in colour, pattern and texture. They reflect many things: cultural differences within the region
-the lifestyle of nomadic people and oasis dwellers
-religious beliefs
-history and
-geography
Nomadic and settled lifestylesThe people of Central Asia have traditionally followed either a nomadic (pastoral) or a settled (agrarian) way of life. These two lifestyles were fostered by the geography. The north was arid and mountainous, best suited to seasonal grazing. The south was more fertile and hence more settled. Nomads and oasis dwellers were always interdependent. In exchange for nomads horses and animal products, oasis dwellers traded their silk crafts and agricultural products.
History influenced textile artsCentral Asia has a long, complex and often violent history.Through the centre of Central Asia, between China and the Mediterranean, ran the Silk Road (a network of trade routes). Continual interaction took place via these trade routes between raiders and conquerors, traders, nomads and oasis dwellers, resulting among other things in the transfer and blending of ideas, motifs, technology and commodities. This is a primary reason why the textile arts of Central Asia are so rich in colour, pattern, motif and technique.
Contemporary designsThat transfer of ideas, skill and design continues today. Contemporary designs are still influenced by the costume, textile arts and furnishings of Central Asia.
In the newly independent Central Asian states of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, the lives and contemporary craft production of the oasis dwellers and those who cling tenaciously to nomadic life continue to be enriched and influenced by the great arts of the past.




Although the distinction between the nomadic and settled people of Central Asia and their ways of life is blurred, it nevertheless serves as a useful framework in any consideration of the material culture of the region. Both nomadic and urban groups produced beautiful textiles, and other goods, with which they dressed and ornamented themselves, and their very different domestic and ritual environments.
The differences between the textiles made by nomadic and settled people are based on:
-need or function
-techniques
-available materials
-motifs and patterns.
Major factors affecting designOther major factors affecting design and form were the many different cultures within Central Asia and the influence of major cultural centres via the trade route, The Silk Road. The Turkmen, Uzbeks, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz and Baluchi all have a strong nomadic inheritance. Some of these groups have settled, some are still nomadic. Some Uzbeks for example, are currently living as nomads and others were urbanised long ago.





The following section focuses on the key elements of Central Asian textile arts.
MotifsMotifs are the distinctive figures featured in many art forms. The motifs in Central Asian textiles are often abstract. Abstracting motifs was essential because of the technological limitations and constraints of flat weaving, ikat and felts. Knotted pile carpets and embroidery allow greater design freedom. Another reason for the wide use of abstract motifs was that Islamic religion forbids the use of realistic images, hence the images became highly stylised motifs.
The ram's horn is a common and very ancient motif. Note the ram's horns in Fig. 4. Floral motifs and patterns occur in both nomadic and urban textiles, both naturalistic (suzani) and stylised (rugs and ikats). Animal motifs are common in nomadic rugs, as the nomads are still influenced by shamanistic beliefs and not as heavily influenced by Islam.

Fig Detail of Tekke Turkmen carpet.Wool warp, wool and cotton weft float brocade, made by Tekke Turkmen women in western Turkestan, late 1800s. 3120 x 1850 mm. 85/1900. Powerhouse Museum Collection.

Repeating motifs

Central Asian textiles, such as nomadic rugs and carpets and urban ikats, are characterised by the use of repeating motifs. The reasons for this are:
repeating motifs are easier to memorise
ikats entail repeats.
The patterns formed by the repetition of motifs were memorised by women and passed down from generation to generation. It was easier to memorise a discrete motif and repeating pattern than a free-flowing design. Rugs can usually be attributed to a particular cultural group by the motifs used.
Young girls learn the skills of textile production from an early age, under the supervision of an older woman, and the designs used by their particular tribal group are committed to memory over many years of training and practice. By their early twenties, most young Turkmen women are skilled weavers and those who have not yet had children may expect to spend up to 12 hours a day weaving.

Rugs

Three types of rugs are produced in Central Asia:
-knotted pile
-flat-weave
-felt.
Rugs and carpets are made in a nomadic context and also in villages and towns. Village rugs are made by women who were once nomadic, using the same or similar patterns. These rugs are often larger and made for the market place. Urban rugs were made by men in workshops on fixed looms. The use of cartoons was necessary for more complex patterns. Cartoons are drawings of the same size as a planned pattern for a rug. It is used as a model so the pattern can be transferred or copied.
In addition to making textiles for their family's own needs, nomadic women produced rugs for sale to town and village people, many of whom were once nomadic themselves and wanted nomadic rugs for their permanent homes.
The shape, method of weaving, dyes, patterns, knot density, and designs of a weaving all tell something about the life of the weaver as well as its use. It tells if she was nomadic or settled, which tribe she was from, and the weaving's intended use.

Rug design from Iran Paper, pencil and watercolour, painted in Iran, about 1920. 540 x 373 mm. Powerhouse Museum collection

TEXTILE ARTS

The textile arts are those arts and crafts that use plant, animal, or synthetic fibers to construct practical or decorative objects. Textiles cover the human body to protect it from the elements and to send social cues to other people. Textiles are used to store, secure, and protect possessions, and to soften, insulate, and decorate living spaces and surfaces.
The word textile is from Latin texere which means "to weave", "to braid" or "to construct". The simplest textile art is felting, in which animal fibers are matted together using heat and moisture. Most textile arts begin with twisting or spinning and plying fibers to make yarn (called thread when it is very fine and rope when it is very heavy). Yarn can then be knotted, looped, braided, or woven to make flexible fabric or cloth, and cloth can be used to make clothing and soft furnishings. All of these items – felt, yarn, fabric, and finished objects – are referred to as textiles.
Textiles have been a fundamental part of human life since the beginning of civilization. The history of textile arts is also the history of international trade. Tyrian purple dye was an important trade good in the ancient Mediterranean. The Silk Road brought Chinese silk to India, Africa, and Europe. Tastes for imported luxury fabrics led to sumptuary laws during the Middle Ages and Renaissance. The industrial revolution was a revolution of textiles technology: cotton gin, the spinning jenny, and the power loom mechanized production and led to the Luddite rebeTextile preservation refers to the processes by which textiles are cared for and maintained to be preserved from future damage. The field can fall under the category of art conservation and restoration as well as library preservation, depending on the type of collection. In this case, the concept of textile preservation applies to a wide range of artifacts, including tapestries, carpets, quilts, clothing, flags and curtains, as well as objects which ‘’contain’’ textiles, such as upholstered furniture, dolls, and accessories such as fans, parasols, gloves and hats or bonnets. Many of these artifacts require specialized care, often by a professional conservator. The goal of this article is to provide a general overview of the textile preservation process, and to serve as a jumping-off point for further research into more specialized care. Always contact a professional conservator if you are unsure of how to proceed in the preservation process.

A textile is a flexible material consisting of a network of natural or artificial fibres often referred to as thread or yarn. Yarn is produced by spinning raw wool fibres, linen, cotton, or other material on a spinning wheel to produce long strands known as yarn. Textiles are formed by weaving, knitting, crocheting, knotting, or pressing fibres together (felt).
The words fabric and cloth are used in textile assembly trades (such as tailoring and dressmaking) as synonyms for textile. However, there are subtle differences in these terms. Textile refers to any material made of interlacing fibres. Fabric refers to any material made through weaving, knitting, crocheting, or bonding. Cloth refers to a finished piece of fabric that can be used for a purpose such as covering a bed.

The production of textiles is an important craft, whose speed and scale of production has been altered almost beyond recognition by industrialization and the introduction of modern manufacturing techniques. However, for the main types of textiles, plain weave, twill or satin weave, there is little difference between the ancient and modern methods.
Incans have been crafting quipus (or khipus) made of fibres either from a protein, such as spun and plied thread like wool or hair from camelids such as alpacas, llamas and camels or from a cellulose like cotton for thousands of years. Khipus are a series of knots along pieces of string. They have been believed to only have acted as a form of accounting, although new evidence conducted by Harvard professor, Gary Urton, indicates there may be more to the khipu than just numbers. Preservation of khipus found in museum and archive collections follow general textile preservation principles and practice.

Textiles can be made from many materials. These materials come from four main sources: animal, plant, mineral, and synthetic. In the past, all textiles were made from natural fibres, including plant, animal, and mineral sources. In the 20th century, these were supplemented by artificial fibres made from petroleum.
Textiles are made in various strengths and degrees of durability, from the finest gossamer to the sturdiest canvas. The relative thickness of fibres in cloth is measured in deniers. Microfibre refers to fibres made of strands thinner than one denier.

Textile engineering (TE) or textile technology deals with the application of scientific and engineering principles to the design and control of all aspects of fiber, textile, and apparel processes, products, and machinery. These include natural and man-made materials, interaction of materials with machines, safety and health, energy conservation, and waste and pollution control. Additionally, textile engineers are given training and experience in plant design and layout, machine and wet process design and improvement, and designing and creating textile products.

The textile arts are those arts and crafts that use plant, animal, or synthetic fibers to construct practical or decorative objects.
Textiles have been a fundamental part of human life since the beginning of civilization,and the methods and materials used to make them have expanded enormously, while the functions of textiles have remained the same. The history of textile arts is also the history of international trade. Tyrian purple dye was an important trade good in the ancient Mediterranean. The Silk Road brought Chinese silk to India, Africa, and Europe. Tastes for imported luxury fabrics led to sumptuary laws during the Middle Ages and Renaissance. The industrial revolution was a revolution of textiles technology: the cotton gin, the spinning jenny, and the power loom mechanized production and led to the Luddite rebellion.
The word textile is from Latin texere which means "to weave", "to braid" or "to construct".[1] The simplest textile art is felting, in which animal fibers are matted together using heat and moisture. Most textile arts begin with twisting or spinning and plying fibers to make yarn (called thread when it is very fine and rope when it is very heavy). The yarn is then knotted, looped, braided, or woven to make flexible fabric or cloth, and cloth can be used to make clothing and soft furnishings. All of these items – felt, yarn, fabric, and finished objects – are collectively referred to as textiles.
The textile arts also include those techniques which are used to embellish or decorate textiles – dyeing and printing to add color and pattern; embroidery and other types of needlework; tablet weaving; and lace-making. Construction methods such as sewing, knitting, chrochet, and tailoring, as well as the tools and techniques employed (looms, sewing needles, and pleating) and the objects made (carpets, coverlets) all fall under the category of textile arts.