The Crusaders are wearing Crochet!

 

Wael Shawky, Cabaret Crusades (2010-2015)

4000 years after their first use in Egypt, Alexandria based artist Wael Shawky has made marionettes a central part of his art practice. His work currently on exhibition at Mathaf, Doha, is presented as a spectacular film series that recounts the history of The Crusades from an Arab perspective. The films are based on literature and historical narratives, using a visual language that mixes fictional storytelling and documentary styles. 

More than 100 hand-blown glass marionettes in period dress (i.e. crochet!!!!) were made by the maestros in Venice, a city with its own minor role in the crusades. The marionettes who range from ethnic caricature to alien xenomorph is equally spooky and mesmerizing to look at. I struggled to peel myself away from the large vitrine of about 50 of these glass marionettes and drawings from Cabaret Crusades that set the stage for the six films screened across the ground floor galleries. This process of telling stories and fictionalizing history through these layers creates a new story of the fight for power that is still present today!

A quick search on the internet has left me empty handed in my quest to find out more about the crocheted items used in creating the marionettes. Today I will be taking a deep dive and see whether I am lucky enough to strike gold and hunt down the crochet artists who clothed the puppets.

According to Mathaf, the Arab museum for modern and comtemporary art: "His practice spanning video, drawing, and performance are in-depth productions about the way history and mythology are written, offering crucial perspectives on contemporary narratives of uncertainty and change. Shawky is a major artist of his generation, developing an original art vocabulary dealing with global aesthetic and political issues. His work is exhibited internationally, most recently in solo exhibitions at MoMA PS1, New York (2015); K20, Düsseldorf (2014); Serpentine Gallery, London (2013); KW Berlin (2012); and large scale group exhibitions including Sharjah Biennial (2013); and dOCUMENTA (13) (2012). His work is collected by public institutions such as MoMA, New York, MACBA, Barcelona, and Qatar Museums, Doha."

 

We are literally living in Art heaven here in Doha. Qatar not only established as the Arts hub of the Middle East, but the tiny country with massive pockets is regarded as the world's leading modern art collector. For more than twenty years, the Al-Thani family had been buying a large collection of art works, from traditional Islamic artifacts to famous pieces of modern and contemporary art and has spent at least $1 billion on Western painting and sculpture. Previous Head of International Modern Contemporary Arab and Iranian Art at Christie's, William Lawrie, said of the Al Thani's: “Qatar’s royal family are very much like modern-day equivalents of the Medicis in 16th-century Florence”.

Forbes describes the Emir's daughter, Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani “arguably the most powerful woman in the art world today” and ranked her one of the 100 most powerful women of the world in 2012. Art and Auction magazine ranked her number one for the art world’s most influential people.

Sheikha Al Mayassa bint Hamad bin Khalifa Al-Thani                                                                                                 Photo credit

The Qatar Museums authority is the lead body for museums in Qatar and in addition to providing a comprehensive organization for museum development, also aligned art museum programmes with the new Supreme Education Council Art Curriculum Standards. Art is a prominent topic in both international as well as local schools and as a parent i am not complaining!

Mathaf, Doha's museum for modern and contemporary art plays a special role in the creative life of Qatar. It is much more than a museum. It is a platform where contemporary artistic production and debate takes place, a showcase for new movements in the art world and a creative community where emerging talent can experiment, create and share projects with one another. 

One of the programmes is The Mathaf Voices a year-long internship program for university students from various academic majors where interns have the opportunity to learn about modern and contemporary art, build their research and communication skills, and lead exhibition tours for the public. 

Another annual programme that celebrates the creativity of students from kindergarten to secondary levels is the Mathaf Student Art Competition and Exhibition organized in partnership with University College London Qatar, Museum and Gallery Practice masters program students. The Teen submitted a winning entry and her work is currently on display until the end of May!!!  

What are you up to? I am nursing a (hell it is painful!) shoulder injury, so not much crocheting is happening here at the Pigtails Palace at the moment.

Indian Cotton Mattresses (gaadi)

Hello!  Our furniture has at long last arrived last week and I have been crazy busy organizing the Pigtails Palace ever since. Ah hell, I am clearly not 20 or 30 or even 40 years old anymore. My muscles are aching, my knees buckling. Three story palaces are really most suitable to the young and restless, not the middle aged! As soon as I unpacked my beautiful Vinnis Colours yarn though, I was feeling young and dandy again! 

 Friday morning I took a respite from unpacking to enjoy breakfast at Souq Waqif and stumbled upon the most interesting little street in downtown Doha. In fact, Doha is packed with interesting streets and I just love being able to finally explore the city now that the weather has cooled down significantly. This street is home to a few Indian Cotton Mattress (also known as gaadi) makers and traders.

 

Such shops are common in the towns of cities of India and it was a surprise to also stumble upon the same in Doha. Production of cotton mattresses (pillows and quilts too) is a labour intensive activity since it is all hand stitched. This YouTube video demonstrates the beautiful process, it is well worth watching to see how they pack the cotton sleeves, hand stitch it closed  (referred to as knitting in this video), flatten and compact the cotton with a stick before finally adding the edging to both sides and sewing the quilt like stitches. Indians are masters with scissors, thread and needles! These mattresses are very comfortable and suitable to hot and humid climates, however, it also loses shape quickly and the cotton needs to be treated and re-packed after a few years.

Two men recount how changes in the bedding industry in India, is affecting their craft:

Anser Basha Mattress Maker from Chennai

Khurban, Mattress Maker from Bangalore

I fell in love with some of the fabrics used to create these mattresses, not to mention that the mattresses and pillows are gorgeous items in its own right. My mind is spinning, I am thinking that this offers the perfect solution with regard to seating, or rather lounging, here at the Pigtails Palace. We have two great outdoor spaces, the one an L-shaped courtyard which also features a build in plant bedding on ground level and the other an entire rooftop area with beautiful wooden lattice shutters dividing space between the water tank and the rest of the rooftop. The space is accessible from a door on the third floor. It is the perfect weather now to develop the full potential of these spaces with the help of  Indian cotton mattresses don't you think?!
 

Have a great week!

Toothpicks and a Cardboard Box

Doily + toothpicks + cardboard box = blocking with minimal resources

I already have a plan to crochet a throw resembling Islamic design

Vinnis Serina in Dark Army or Army + Amanda Perkins pattern in either Clementine or Jonquil = Islamic inspired throw

Our new abode

This is the view from the l-shaped courtyard on the ground floor

There is also a rooftop patio leading from the third floor

T's a happy feeling home

BUT

We have a pink, yes a PINK kitchen for goodness sake!

Dusky pink and stone coloured tiles . . . 

Loving the Linen Stitch!

 

 Pattern: Woven Stitch/Linen Stitch

Yarn: Drops Paris in 6 different colours

Hook Size: 5mm

Thank you once again for my gorgeous yarn Haafner, I have doilies hanging from the hooks at the moment and hope my effort to create gorgeous doily bowls does not disappoint! 

 A while back I spotted these hand-size butterfly beauties from the 1920's in an antique store and instantly fell in love with it. When The Teen gave me an idea of what she would like her new room to look like, I realised that these would make for a perfect start to execute her vision. I was doing the happy dance when my eye also spotted the brass mirror, it is solid and heavy and I wish I had more information about the origin of this standing mirror. The glass was broken, but life is endlessly surprising and a glass & mirror shop trades right across the road from the antique shop. Within 5 minutes, I had a hand cut mirror fitted. 

The Champs Elysees Palace (yes, that is the name of this antique shop!) is owned by a Hindi, Arabic, English and Farsi speaking Iranian. The shop is located on Al Mirqab Al Jadeed Street, Doha, Qatar.

Meanwhile Ikea didn't disappoint either! We bought the full length mirror and clothing rack as can be seen in the above picture, with the hat & coat stand and carpet to follow soon.  Looks like the Teen is not interested in this particular throw, but I really like it and think it will be a great item for the master bedroom. 

I have also spotted a gorgeous velvet single bed throw trimmed in faux fur at another one of my favourite stores in the Middle East, namely THE One. Invented by a Swede, the stores are referred to as Theaters: "We don't sell products. We sell feelings. Because we believe that it's not what you buy that's important, it's what you feel after you have bought it."  Apart from ethical sourcing, they make a difference by employing challenged people, do a lot of local volunteering and is involved in a sustainable village community programme. It is easy to see why THE One has been rated the top local employer to work for by global research and management consultancies for the 4th year running.  I am almost feeling guilty for not making that purchase yet!

Enjoy the rest of your weekend. Today is the last day of what was a wonderful Eid holiday here. 

xxxxxx