Handlooms as Heirlooms
Neha Marina
Handlooms as Heirlooms is a series of books, a website, and a printed tapestry. The titular book of the collection, outlines the handwoven saris my mother has collected over 27 years, alongside family photographs, process images, and portraits of weavers in India. There are four subsidiary books, titled Sari Swatches, divided by color—each contains images of my mother’s saris printed on linen paper to enhance their materiality. The printed tapestry is a grid of all the saris, acting as a mosaic of her collection seen all at once. The final component is a website that features all 158 saris, which can be filtered by color, weave, and occasion.
My mother has been collecting saris for as long as I can remember. She owns more than ten different kinds of weaves, each bought or worn for various birthdays, anniversaries, weddings, and other special occasions. I’ve listened to her speak about these saris with such love and care that I’ve come to see them as treasures—woven gold that demonstrates how weaving is a labor of love.
In India, families have passed down weaving for generations, preserving both culture and craftsmanship. Saris are also seen as inherent heirlooms, purchased with the intention of being passed down from mother to daughter, further preserving family history and culture. This collection of work is an attempt to document and honor my mother’s collection of saris that will one day be passed down for generations to come.