Bibi and a Horse Named Douldoul

Journey of Traditions is my new book of short stories. It was created, along with my paintings and illustrations, to accompany a future exhibition of artifacts from South Central Asia.

In my story "Bibi and a horse named Doul Doul" Bibi dreams of sitting on her father's favorite horse.

This beautiful Buzkashi [polo] whip, which I included in my painting above, is made of wood, silver and leather and set with carnelians.

Here are more artifacts from the future exhibition Journey of Traditions.

A typical Buskashi hat.  Suede trimmed with fur.

I found this beautiful baby blanket while traveling in Turkey! It shows how far things travel and you never know where you will find something from another area. This little blanket is hand embroidered with God's eyes for protection.  It is made with hand woven wool.

I found this wonderful little young girl's ceremonial hat in the weekend market in Islamabad. It is also included in my illustration above. It's trimmed with lapis, wood beads, silver beads and coins, with inlaid glass silver ornaments, on cotton.

Copper Betel Nut Box



Closed Betel Nut Box

This incredible women's Turkoman coat is intricately embroidered with silk thread.  The hat is also hand embroidered with silver ornaments

Hat Detail

Hand woven ornament used to decorate Turkoman tents.

Afghan Samovar tea pot.  Copper with hand etching.

Young child's tiny cotton dress. Cowrie shells, glass beads, coins and german silver ornaments for protection. 

Turkoman women's shoes.  Leather, wood, embroidered with silk.

This, below, is a wool hand woven tent wrap, used to decorate as well as hold a yurt together. It can be inside or outside of the tent. It's wonderful to see the detail and beautiful artistry in every day objects.

It's exciting to share these beautiful artifacts from the people of South Central Asia. Many of these works are old and quite rare.

Coming up, some wonderful works from the Islamabad, Pakistan!

Thanks for visiting!

The Story of Aysha in the Swat Valley of Pakistan

Aysha The Wood Carvers Daughter by Carole Keller
Oil on Canvas

If you are new to this blog, I've just published a book of short stories. I've integrated artifacts I've collected, in Pakistan, into my illustrations. The painting above is an example of one of the characters.

The girl in the portrait is named Aysha and lives in the Swat Valley of northwestern Pakistan. I painted her wearing a wedding dress, below, which I found in a store filled with vintage textiles while I was living in Islamabad. 

There are over 200 panels of fabric sewn together in the skirt alone.  Buttons and coins adorn the dress.

Aysha also wears a silver necklace with red glass.

In this next painting, Aysha is entering her home, built by the men in her family, who are wood carvers.  Her aunt is cooking and her grandmother is holding 

her younger brother. You'll see the artifacts below that I included in the illustration.

Wooden mud shoes that Aysha wears are also used in the snow. The "uppers" are made of jute.

Above, a ceramic fire ring that is placed on the ground for cooking. It's very heavy! I found it the day before we left Pakistan. I'm sure the people with the moving company thought I was nuts!

Aysha's little brother wears a  silk embroidered hat

with beads. 

Below, a snow shovel, chair, window, and small table with a beautiful copper bowl. The copper wear is so beautiful in Pakistan and a lot came from other areas including the pieces made in Afghanistan and Kashmir.

I thought I'd include some other artifacts in the post that would be used in this same area of Pakistan. The next piece is obviously an iron. It's made of wood and heavy brass which is filled with coal for heat.

This hand carved cheese pot and butter turn are quite large. It's the only one I saw in 3 years of living there. I'm not sure if it's my imagination but I'm pretty sure I can still smell the cheese!

Low wooden storage chest which you can find here, as well.

Hand carved animal amulets help keep track of livestock. They are hung around a goat or sheep's neck to identify the tribe.

Thanks so much for visiting my blog! Please check out my two previous posts, below. 

Be back soon! Inshallah! :-)