Originating in several countries such as India, Japan, and Indonesia, ikat fabric has been made for centuries by skilled artisans to signify and celebrate their respective communities. Ikat is a technique using resistance dyeing to create one-of-a-kind, handmade textiles. Instead of constructing patterns onto fabric, ikat weavers dye threads with a design in mind prior to the material being produced. A key characteristic of ikat fabric is the “blurriness” in the finished designs. This refers to small discrepancies often seen in the completed pattern due to the difficult task of lining up each thread when weaving. While some avoid this perceived side effect of the ancient technique, others search it out as a sign of true authenticity. More than a beautiful material, ikat fabric holds centuries of history, culture, and artistry within its threads.
Warp, Weft, and Double Ikat
Warp
Warp refers to the thread which runs lengthwise on the loom. Warp ikat fabric means that the warp threads (or yarn) are resistance dyed, showcasing a pattern prior to the textile being woven. The process of creating a warp ikat textile consists of weaving in solid coloured weft threads back and forth until the material is finished and secure.
Weft
Weft then refers to the thread which runs widthwise on the loom. Creating weft ikat fabric means that the resistance dyed weft yarns are woven into the solid coloured warp yarns in order to produce a pattern as the weaving goes on. Weft ikats take much longer time and are more laborious because threads must be adjusted carefully throughout the process. The attention to detail is important in building the desired pattern.
Double
A rare type of ikat, the double ikat, utilises both warp and weft threads equally. In this technique, both sets of yarn are resistance dyed and woven together to generate a pattern. Only when both the warp and weft are woven together in the correct way is the design revealed. This process is the most tedious and difficult, making double ikats the most expensive and revered.
Motifs and Meanings
Ikat fabric’s history spans multiple countries, communities, and cultures, making it hard to pin down all the stories behind the ancient textile’s designs. Some patterns reflected the spiritual practices of the people who created them, others were influenced by the natural world around them, and many were simply artistic endeavours. Each motif may have been used to either appease or protect individuals against spirits, though there is very little information about which patterns signify what. What we do know is that vegetation, triangular designs, and colour have played key roles in traditional ikat. Each one pleasant, protective, and powerful in their own way.
Vegetation
Not unlike many ancient and current cultures, flowers and vegetation are used as symbols of fertility. Especially when worn by young women, these organic motifs are woven into fabric in the hopes that it will help to continue a family line and aid in a community’s prosperity.
The Birmingham Museum of Art has found that “two especially strong nature motifs are the boteh (bud) and the leaf (which resembles paisley). The bud and the leaf are the quintessential imagery of fertility. ”
Triangles
Found in the Trikora and Kangura pattern, triangles have the ability to symbolise “stability with the elements of earth and water.” In the case of traditional ikat fabric, the geometric motif often creates a sign of protection. Ikat fabric designs were frequently inspired by jewelry and this pattern may have been borrowed from pieces known as “moska,” which featured triangular silver amulets connected to multiple long tassels.
Colours
Due to ikat’s laborious nature, multiple colours played traditional roles in signifying class and status. The more colours woven into the handmade fabric, the more intensive the process, and therefore the more expensive the ikat pieces became. Vibrant colours were often worn by men to assert power and wealth within ancient communities. Traditional ikat colours included those dyed from plants, flowers, and tree bark , infusing even more meaning from nature into each textile created.
We may not ever know all of the stories of ikat fabric motifs, colours, and processes, though the enduring tradition gives us all an opportunity to find meaning in our clothing. The University of Nebraska put it perfectly in an explanation of ikat is the technique of resistance dyeing which creates beautiful, one-of-a-kind handmade textiles. their exhibition “Colour and Pattern: Tribal and Contemporary Ikats of India and Laos” from 2010:
Ikat is a creative symbiosis of Colour & Pattern in the textile world: it both decodes cultural belief systems for a large number of ancient communities across Asia and Latin America, and it visually engages contemporary textile enthusiasts for its visual complexity, graphic brilliance, and technical intricacy.
Audrey Stanton was born and raised in the Bay Area and currently based in Los Angeles. She works as a freelance content creator and manager. Audrey is incredibly passionate about conscious fashion and hopes to continue to spread awareness of ethical consumption.