Indian Traditional Weaving. Learn from a Master! with Pachan Premji Siju

Pachan is a graduate of a design program founded by Judy Frater. His weaving skills and imagination have brought him opportunities to work with designers, scholars, and customers from all over the world. In this workshop he will teach traditional Kutch supplemental weft designs, using a technique that combines loom control and finger manipulation. Once you have the concept, you can design your own motifs and use them to embellish your work. This is an opportunity to be introduced to a unique Indian tradition and learn from a master. He can also teach finishing and joining techniques, and twill and weft-faced weaves.

Weaving Ability: Beginner and above. If you can warp your loom, you're good to go!

Schedule: The workshop runs from 9:30 am - 4 pm and Lunch is provided!

Size: The group will be limited to twelve people.

Supplies you will bring: 

"Participants will bring a pre-warped loom.  Four shafts are needed. Instructions will be provided."

Yarns - The weft and extra weft yarns should be the same count as the warp yarns. We suggest that warp and weft should be the same color.  Contrasting colors for extra weft yarns is important.

Instructor Information:

Pachan Premji Siju

A renowned weaver, Pachan's father told his sons weaving had no future. When he passed, Pachan had to weave. Then, seeking better income, he worked the night shift at a mining factory. The pollution affected him, so he returned to weaving. Meanwhile his brother Puroshottam studied design at KRV, and the three brothers began their own business. Pachan knew weaving but had little exposure. In 2015 Puroshottam sent him to SKV. In one design class, he learned that education did not mean reading and writing. "This course is for me!" he declared. He graduated with the award for Most Marketable Collection. Designer Ritu Kumar showed his collection at Rajasthan Heritage week.

"Before, I thought design was a fixed notion," Pachan reflected. "Now I am able to play!" More than livelihood, weaving is art, a source of respect, and a thread that links me and my brothers." He designed a logo Three Threads, symbolizing warp, weft and extra weft--and the three brothers, now their brand.

In 2018, Pachan mentored women weavers in Kumaon. "We had to really grasp what we knew," he said. He realized that teaching was building creativity and confidence. On return, he designed and wove two saris inspired by the pinecones he had seen. More impressive, he wove a collection of one-of-a kind saris. He later mentored women artisans in Ladakh and participated in a co-design project with Oaxaca artists. 

Pachan's next collections using intricate extra weft figures to express his concern with climate change, the imagination in clouds and the wisdom of his mother were juried into the International Folk Art Market 2020, 2022, and 2023. 

In 2022 he traveled to Oaxaca to conduct workshops through the Museo Textil de Oaxaca, and in 2023 he attended IFAM in Santa Fe.

"I have woven all my life," he said. "What I have done with my weaving is what is important."