Kamilah Ahmed

My practice explores imagined and estranged landscapes that depict the boundaries between, history and folklore, hybridity and heritage, fantasy and reality, transgression and tradition to communicate a personal narrative. Homing in on the tradition of Jamdani muslin sari weaving and the revival of this Bengali, Dhakai art after its initial decline due to colonial import policies favouring industrially manufactured textiles, I wish to celebrate this remerging tradition through hybrid aesthetics that juxtapose contemporary techniques with hand making skills.

Developing hand wrapped warps held together by digital embroidery, trapping silk yarns along with other experimental approaches to the laying down threads, my work disrupts and interrupts the traditional order of craft processes. Challenging ideas of ‘new opulence’, and the manners in which I can transform materials to make them luxurious, re-valuing them through innovative techniques. I aim to create statement couture pieces that convey an element of fantasy, engage in a conversation about the value of hand making and the too often unseen artistry that goes into the finished outcome.