By
Savitha Hira
Photography:
Courtesy SNK Architects
Mumbai’s first Textile and Costume Gallery at the CSMVS opens to collective nods of appreciation as the
curated collection sits in a breezy trendy envelope that deftly combines
museology tenets with a contemporary mindset...
With a rich background
of textiles in our country, and a legacy referenced from the Vedic times, the
newly opened Textile Gallery draws its design inspiration from the nature of
textiles itself; whilst its curatorial footprint is theme-based.
Using the warp and weft
- the basic constituents of the weave, and the two most common practices in
textiles - weaving and dyeing - Architects Somaya & Kalappa Consultants cull
out a design vocabulary that seeks as it informs. Wrapped in a cocoon of black
(that maintains neutrality, conceals essential services and controls light
spread to accentuate only the exhibit cabinets), the exhibits stand out on
garment donned mannequins in floor-to-ceiling glass cases, lining either side
of the gallery space, commanding one’s attention in a criss-cross fashion.
Colours like red, purple, blue, yellow, green and pink (common colours used in
dyeing) accentuate different sections of the exhibits.
Two concept-driven areas
herald the entrance and exit - better known as the ‘introductory’ and ‘interactive’
foyers – and are anointed with decorative ceilings that catch one’s eye and add
to the enigmatic quotient of the gallery.
The grid ceiling in the
introduction area has "open cell"
thermoplastic panels - interlocking panels with no grid or
structure, injection moulded in ABS (Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene)
with mesh. It is light,
modular, long lasting and functional, allows easy, quick, modern and effective
surface creation.
Interactive Area |
The Interactive area displays a dramatic fabric suspended ceiling. The fabric is fire retardant, translucent and long lasting and fixed in a way that it can be easily removed for timely maintenance. Small mock-up modules were first tested to look at the aesthetic impact, dynamism and fluidity of the fabric ceiling.
The curatorial team of
the CSMVS has worked hand-in-glove with the architects, carefully looking into
matters of upkeep, maintenance of RH levels in the air (50-55%); temperature
and lux levels, especially as the gallery hosts a variety of textiles. “The display cases and the fabrication
material were painted with 3nos. coats of Acrylic emulsion paint as a
preservative measure against any harmful gases or by-products that may damage
textiles. The lights used in the gallery are LED lights with UV and IR free
along with the colour rendition and heat index (negligible) as desired by the
curators,” informs Nandini Sampat, architect on the project.
The gallery stands out
for its minimalist approach despite sustaining viewer-interest with its fair
share of colour, signage and information-interaction upkeep. The most
challenging part, informs Nandini has been to fit in all the exhibits in the
designated space, without overcrowding or overlapping on the historical and
aesthetic fronts.
Whilst the gallery displays different textiles from all over
India, some of its prized possessions include block-printed cotton fabrics (popularly
known as Fustat) belonging to the
14th century; jabla and topi of Sir Jamshedji Tata; and Batik
silk saree designed by renowned
artist Nandlal Bose of the Bengal School.
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