Thread, 2025
Through deep engagement with diverse textile methodologies, the Chankya School extends the possibilities of the medium, advancing new paradigms of material practice while remaining grounded in inherited wisdom of their four decade long foray in the field.
Under the direction of Karishma Swali, whose 25-year engagement with craft traditions, the ateliers sees its practice as a site of material investigation, reframing craft's role within current cultural thought and debate.
Swali and the Chanakya School of Craft have collaborated with celebrated artists Judy Chicago, Mickalene Thomas, Faith Ringgold, Isabella Ducrot and Barthélémy Toguo. In 2024, they presented Cosmic Garden with Madhvi and Manu Parekh at the 60th International Art Exhibition – La Biennale di Venezia. Most recently, in 2025, En Route, a dialogue with Maria Grazia Chiuri, was presented at the Vatican Apostolic Library during its Jubilee Year celebrations.
At the heart of this practice lie the foundational values of honouring women's practices, affirming the power of collective expression, and nurturing the transmission of knowledge across generations.