I was first introduced to the tapestries by Monika Correa
through the pages of ‘The India Magazine’ in the early 1980’s. Then, a student
of woven textiles, I was awed by her audacity and ingenuity in removing the
reed of the warped threads to weave those fluid yet structured, unforgettable
images of the Banyan Tree. This technique, of removing the reed while weaving the
fabric, has become Correa’s signature style. In the present body of work,
‘Meandering Warp’, exhibited at Gallery Chemould Prescott Road in Mumbai, the
visual qualities of the woven pieces have moved away from representing any
sense of the figurative towards a more abstract and philosophical exploration.
The large woven pieces present a tactile sensuality that is evocative of a
deep, intense questioning of something that seems to have no answer, because, a
similar question persists throughout the works. Correa’s woven explorations
meander but do not necessarily deviate from the essence of her intellectual
preoccupation. The thread canvas is ascetic, yet sensual, evocative of the universal,
yet intensely personal
‘Jamshedpur’ [40 x 53 inch], is woven with red-dyed cotton
threads in the weft and an unbleached off-white cotton warp. This contrast both
highlights the redness of the maroon and softens its bloody overtones. The warp
begins, at the bottom, with a division into three, almost equal parts, where in
the central portion the reed has been removed lending fluidity to the threads,
while the outer ends of the warp threads, are fitted within the confines of a
reed for a more structured weave. The basic construction is an open twill weave
where the weft colour dominates. The artist has envisioned the work such that
even though the magic of its construction lies in the way the warp threads are
manipulated, the coloured weft provides the contrast in hue and texture to
highlight the dancing movement of the warp threads. A quasi-Rothko-like
sectional is drawn as the eye moves slowly from bottom to top, following the
weft, but along the lines of the warp. Akin to a vertical river flowing
upstream, the wavy threads culminate in a square of vertical waves -
effortlessly contained. For, as the weaving progresses, they respond meekly to
the discipline of the reed. As if a restless mind having expressed itself has been
appeased. 
Each tapestry seems to be a continuum of such inner explorations.
The trajectory is subtle. ‘Foggy Day’ [40 x 70 inches] begins with the dark
colours that underlie the dinginess of a day where the light is blocked by a
cloudy sky. Gradually, as the weaver shuttles the weft in and out, light seems
to penetrate the realms of a mind fogged out. A Black weft leads to a deep blue
and then it gets lighter still until the unbleached cotton warp and weft seem
to meet in a confluence of enlightened minds. There is an apparent resolution
to this foggy day. However, Correa’s more successful works are those where the
resolution is not quite so obvious and the warp distortions create deceptive
illusions.
The optical illusion created in ‘The Sound of Silence’ [28 x
62 inches] is skilfully constructed. Woven with black cotton warp threads and a
contrasting, unbleached cotton weft, the chatter of the unspoken voices seem to
get louder and louder. This is denoted by a singular, precisely woven, steep
chevron rising upwards, dissipating into a medley of confused lines. The
chevron is still there, but the clarity of its form has dissipated. And yet
only so much, for it cannot escape the essential pattern determined by way the
warp has been threaded, a construction that is precisely articulated, with the
help of the reed, at the commencement of the tapestry. This piece ends with a black warp and weft woven
together which obscures the detail of the fabric construction. And darkness descends,
as it must when we give into the insecure chattering of the mind. The
monochromatic colour-scheme and deceptively simple woven construct draw the
viewer into their own mindscapes, looking for something familiar, finding it
and then losing it, but without getting lost. There is clarity despite the
conundrum.
The tapestries by Correa are highly evocative of the machinations
of a contemporary urban mind. There is discipline, but restlessness too. There
is structure, but yearning for freedom and fluidity - to just be. Sometimes
there is resolve and often resolution too, but many times darkness descends
before lightness dawns. The weaving is skilful. The ideas are subtle and not equivocal.
Correa’s threads are open to interpretation. Each viewer must find themselves in
these thread-ruminations as we do in the fluid, reflective surface of a deep
pond.
I found the monochromatic pieces most appealing and the
black and white ones most appropriate for the ascetic meanderings of a subtle
and refined mind. The exhibition could have been more concisely edited.
‘Tree-One’, ‘Homage to Kepes’, ‘Purple Rose of Cairo’ and ‘Bethlehem’ brought
much coarser elements into play. These detracted from the subtlety of the major
body of work and I felt that had such works not been included, the song of
Correa’s threads would have touched an unforgettable chord.
