Kancham Chaudhary

Bardiya, Nepal

Kanchan lives in Burigaun in the district of Bardiya, central Nepal. She was nine when her beloved elder brother was shot and killed in 2002 during the height of the conflict in Nepal and this painful event has played an important role in Kanchan's's emergence as a skilled fiber artist. Kanchan was already an excellent artist, as witnessed by an intricate painting of a Hindu festival that adorns the walls at her home. Kanchan brought her skill to the Bardiya embroidery project. After learning embroidery from Sarita in 2016 she produced two stories about her brother’s loss for the Bardiya Memorial Quilts, one of which showed Kanchan being consoled by her mother. Kanchan has since produced embroidery that is richly designed and stitched with great skill, ranging from tiger bags to the festival blocks offered through this store. In 2022 we asked Kanchan to take time off from her job at an insurance company to join Kushma and train disadvantaged Tharu women in Dang District. Kanchan has described the scene in one of her finest blocks for this store.

Kanchan and her friends have one more embroidery achievement to their credit. Through their embroidery projects they have introduced a new style of fiber art, particular to this region of Nepal. This is based around punch-needle embroidery in which the needle is pushed down and back to produce heavy looping on one side and exquisitely detailed stitching on the other.

More from Kanchan

Work by Kancham