Piece by Piece

For Shakuntala Kulkarni godhadis evoke images of warmth, bonding and togetherness. quot;My mother, an excellent needle-woman, personally...

For Shakuntala Kulkarni godhadis evoke images of warmth, bonding and togetherness. quot;My mother, an excellent needle-woman, personally made them for me and my children. It was a gift of love,quot; she says. And in a unique tribute to a tradition that was handed down to the artist by the women of her family, she has put together a collection of godhadis, in a different format. Kulkarni has merged her art with the craft of stitching together multi-coloured pieces of cloth to create painted images 8212; woven into a common theme 8212; and put them up in the form of an art exhibition.

quot;I liked the concept of irrelevant things which, when joined together, can make a relevant work. Which is why this format patches woven into a godhadi appealed to me, specially the idea of having white threads running all over, like little dots that complete the picture,quot; she says.

The predominant theme here is urban women. Each work has bold sketches of naked women, sometimes a human chain, holding hands, sitting, standingand moving. quot;I find that middle class women are always running. I myself have been so drained at times that I have felt I had no time to even breathe,quot; she says.

Kulkarni has given her figures exaggerated proportions to depict movement three pairs of hands and legs, or feet twisted inward to almost give the impression of an awkward walk. quot;I feel there8217;s nothing wrong with being proud of your body, and today, painting the female form is no longer just a man8217;s prerogative. These women stand naked without fear, and since my focus was on movement, I thought clothes would hamper the flow of their bodies,quot; she says.

Several patches bring out the mother and child8217; equation, which she has drawn from her own experiences. But she says most of the themes grew as she went along. quot;I wasn8217;t sure how I8217;d connect these patches. I went by instinct for the placement of individual pieces, keeping in mind the overall visual appeal of each work.quot; It took her over a year to piece together 10 godhadis each priced atapproximately Rs 20,000 with the aid of Hirabai, a domestic help, who stitched the entire collection. quot;I was a little apprehensive when I took my godhadis and spread them in Hirabai8217;s kholi.

I thought she and her family would be embarrassed to see the nude figures. I realised how wrong I was in my assumption 8212; these people accepted my work without any inhibitions,quot; she says, as she hopes, will those who viewher exhibition.

At Gallery Chemould, Jehangir Art Gallery. Till Jan 4, 1999. Time:10.30 am to 6.30 pm