Eastern Flowers

This one-of-a-kind ikat textile from the island of Lembata speaks trade that made the Indonesian spice islands such an intense point of commerce centuries ago. The ikat motif on this textile is called patola, inspired by Indian patola textiles that were traded into Indonesia from India in the 15th – 19th century. Indian tradecloths are held as a clan's most sacred treasures.

This one panel textile is locally known as a senai which is a narrow textile woven to be worn over the shoulder or around the neck by a woman to complete her traditional dress. Traditional textiles always contain elements that relate to the way of life within the culture.

Information about the makers will be supplied with each cloth.
Warp Ikat, single panel, twisted fringe, commercial cotton, natural dyes. Ikat tied, dyed and woven in Wulandoni, Lembata, 2024. Size 170 x 22 cm / 67 x 8.5 in