Thesis show: When dhotis become pants

Display features work of over 70 BNU students.

LAHORE:

“A significant number of Sikh men attired themselves in jamawar in the 19th century,” Ayesha Rashid Malik, a graduating student of Beaconhouse National University’s Mariam Dawood School of Visual Arts and Design, said on Saturday.

She was speaking at the second day of the school’s annual thesis show. Malik, whose work has been inspired by Sikh fashion in the 19th century, said she had reinvented design elements employed in men’s attire in the era for women. She said a great deal of attention was paid to turbans in any discussion on Sikh fashion despite it being multifaceted. Malik said she had used pleats from a Sikh dhoti to create pants with a contemporary feel for women.

Ghina Tariq, another graduating student, said she had derived inspiration from the Queen of Hearts, a character in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland. “I re-imagined her in a more contemporary and modern setting,” Tariq said. She said the dresses on display showed the queen’s clout and her wicked nature. Tariq said the attires had been crafted in light of contemporary fashion and design aesthetics nevertheless. She said she had used hot batik wax with knitted material to give the dresses texture and create patterns on them.

Adeel Ahmed, another graduating student, said his work charted his personal evolution. He said he had not been allowed to express his individuality as he hailed from a conservative family. Ahmed said this had stifled his personal growth.  He said his four works on display represented four stages of his journey of personal growth. Ahmed said the stages commenced with suppression, moved on to stubbornness and surrender and terminated at destination. He said he had given a more fluid dimension to material commonly used in menswear by giving it different cuts.

Visitors at the exhibition said the works on display were reinforced by strong concepts and were practical. The show, which features the work of over 70 graduating students, was inaugurated on Friday.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 31^st, 2015.