Jasleen Dhamija (1933-2023[1][2]) was an Indian textile art historian, crafts expert and former UN worker.[3] Based in Delhi, she was best known for her pioneering research on the handloom and handicraft industry, especially history of textiles and costumes.[4][5] She was professor of living cultural traditions at the University of Minnesota.[6] Over the years, during her career as a textile revivalist and scholar, she authored several books on textiles, including Sacred Textiles of India (2014).[4][7]
Early life and background
[edit]Dhamija grew up in Abbottabad, in the North Western Frontier Province, before her family migrated to Delhi in 1940, where they lived in Khyber Pass locality of Civil Lines, Delhi, and graduated from Miranda House, University of Delhi.[1][8]
Career
[edit]She started her career in 1954, with culture and craft revivalist Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay in the Government of India, and started working on craft revival, community development and women's employment.[9][10] In the 1960s, she worked with the Handicrafts Board of India, next she started working with artisans directly in rural area, this in time lead to her work with the UN developing self-help programmes for women in war-torn Balkan countries.[3]
Over the years, she curated several textile and crafts exhibitions.[10] Besides several books, on crafts and textile, she also wrote two cookbooks, including Joy of Vegetarian Cooking (2000). In 2007, she published a biography of Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay and her role in the revival of the arts and crafts in modern India.[11]
She was part of the faculty at the National Institute of Fashion Technology, New Delhi, where she taught History of Indian Textiles and costumes.[5]
Works
[edit]- P.N. Mago; Jasleen Dhamija (1970). Himachal Heritage. Tata Press.
- Jasleen Dhamija (1976). Role of Institutional Support on the Rural Non-farm Sector. Employment and Rural Development Division, World Bank.
- Jasleen Dhamija (1979). Living Tradition of Iran's Crafts. Vikas. ISBN 978-0-7069-0728-5.
- Jasleen Dhamija; Carnegie Corporation of New York; Ford Foundation (1981). Women and handicrafts: myth and reality. SEEDS.
- Jasleen Dhamija (1983). Income-generating Activities for Rural Women in Developing Countries : an Overview. International Labour Office.
- Jasleen Dhamija (1985). Crafts of Gujarat. Mapin. ISBN 9780295962481.
- Jasleen Dhamija; Jyotindra Jain (1989). Handwoven fabrics of India. Mapin Pub. ISBN 9780944142264.
- Jasleen Dhamija (1994). Indian Folk Arts and Crafts. National Book Trust.
- Jasleen Dhamija (1995). The Woven Silks of India. Marg Publications. ISBN 978-81-85026-28-2.
- Jasleen Dhamija (2000). The Joy of Vegetarian Cooking. Penguin Books. ISBN 978-0-14-028749-3.
- Jasleen Dhamija (2002). Woven magic: the affinity between Indian and Indonesian textiles. Dian Rakyat. ISBN 9789795235675.
- Jasleen Dhamija (2003). Cooking for All Seasons. Penguin Books India. ISBN 978-0-14-302809-3.
- Jasleen Dhamija (2003). Handicrafts of India: Our Cultural Tradition. National Book Trust, India. ISBN 978-81-237-3974-8.
- Jasleen Dhamija (2004). Asian embroidery. Abhinav Publications. ISBN 81-7017-450-3.
- Jasleen Dhamija (2007). Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay. National Book Trust. ISBN 978-81-237-4882-5.
- Joanne B. Eicher; Jasleen Dhamija (2010). Berg Encyclopedia of World Dress and Fashion: South Asia and Southeast Asia. Berg. ISBN 978-1-84788-393-3.
- Jasleen Dhamija (2014). Sacred Textiles of India. Marg Publications. ISBN 978-93-83243-01-3.
References
[edit]- ^ a b "India in the 1940s: The way we were". Hindustan Times. 10 August 2013. Archived from the original on 11 August 2013. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
- ^ "Remembering Jasleen Dhamija, India's custodian of crafts (1933-2023)". The Indian Express. 16 March 2023. Retrieved 26 September 2023.
- ^ a b Labonita Ghosh (29 October 2001). "Jasleen Dhamija looks beyond embroidery at the people responsible for it". India Today. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
- ^ a b Sangeeta Barooah Pisharoty (23 July 2014). "Drapes and divinity - The Hindu". The Hindu. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
- ^ a b "Jasleen Dhamija" (PDF). Sutra Textile Studies. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 October 2014. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
- ^ Damayanti Datta (16 January 2009). "The interpretation of yarns". India Today. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
- ^ Dhara Vora (1 September 2014). "Weaving holy traditions". MiD DAY. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
- ^ "Of people and places: Jasleen Dhamija". Indian-seminar. 2002. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
- ^ Janani Sampath (3 November 2012). "South has preserved crafts successfully so far". The New Indian Express. Archived from the original on 26 October 2014. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
- ^ a b "Dhamija, Jasleen". craftrevival.org. Archived from the original on 14 February 2014. Retrieved 9 October 2014.
- ^ "Paperback Pickings". The Telegraph - Calcutta. 16 March 2007. Archived from the original on 9 October 2014. Retrieved 9 October 2014.