Fowler Museum to Showcase Women's Textile Traditions of
Southeast Asia "Weavers' Stories From Island Southeast Asia" and
"Nini Towok's Spinning Wheel" run from August through mid-
December at UCLA. By Stacey Ravel Abarbanel for the UCLA
Newsroom In the Southeast Asian archipelago, making cloth is
regarded as the archetypal form of women's work and creativity.
Traditionally, women learned the textile arts — typically
weaving or making batik — before they were eligible for
marriage. Later in life, excelling in making cloth, and
especially in mastering complex natural-dye processes, was
regarded as the highest measure of a woman's achievement. This
summer, the Fowler Museum at UCLA will present two exhibitions —
"Weavers' Stories From Island Southeast Asia" and "Nini Towok's
Spinning Wheel: Cloth and the Cycle of Life in Kerek, Java" —
that offer visitors a chance to delve into these fascinating and
longstanding traditions like never before. Weavers' Stories From
Island Southeast Asia, Aug. 1–Dec. 12 In "Weavers'