‘The Red Dress Project’ returns to India

The JSW Foundation brought the global, award-winning collaborative ‘The Red Dress Project’ to India to be hosted at Hampi Art Labs at JSW Township in Ballari district on Friday.

The Red Dress is currently on display, along with Knots that Bind, a specially curated selection of artwork from Sangita Jindal, chairperson of JSW Foundation.

The brainchild of British artist Kirstie Macleod, The Red Dress Project will be on display till November 22 at the Hampi Art Labs.

Since its inception in 2009, the Red Dress has brought together 367 women, 11 men, and two non-binary artists from more than 50 countries.

The garment represents artists from diverse backgrounds and their stories.

The Knots that Bind collection comprises select pieces from Sangita Jindal’s own collection and represents shared histories of materiality, community, and legacies.

Speaking about this unique project, Ms.

Jindal said that the Red Dress was a special project that weaves together craft and community in a meaningful way.

“It resonates deeply with causes close to my heart—celebrating craft and empowering women.

The pieces from my own collection, displayed alongside the dress, reflect similar themes.

Having been displayed in major museums around the world, I am thrilled to see the red dress return to South India, where its journey began.

It now returns not just with intricate embroideries, but with the stories, experiences, and emotions of all the lives it has touched along the way,” she said.

Commenting on the project, Ms.

Macleod said that the red dress is a global collaborative embroidery project involving the voices and stitches of 380 individuals from 51 countries between 2009 and 2023.

“One of the main inspirations in creating the project was my time spent travelling around India, and in particular spontaneous embroidery moments with Lambani women in Karnataka in 2006.

I have incorporated some of the embroideries I collected during that time into the Red Dress, to honour the seeds that led to its creation.

I am extremely grateful to Ms.

Jindal and the JSW Foundation for inviting the Red Dress and I to be a part of this unique exhibition at Hampi Art Labs, and for supporting the completion of a poignant cycle for The Red Dress Project; the opportunity to come back to where it all began,” she said.

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