For centuries, weaving has been intertwined with life in Indonesia. An evocative exploration of that heritage unfolds as Threads of Life presents a special exhibition and film programme at Jenggala Keramik, from 27 February to 30 April 2026. Bringing together textiles and film storytelling, the exhibition invites visitors to discover the archipelago’s enduring cultural traditions of weaving.
Founded in 1998, Threads of Life is a Bali-based fair-trade social enterprise dedicated to preserving Indonesia’s traditional textile knowledge while supporting rural livelihoods. The exhibition presents a selection of textiles created by more than 1,200 women artisans from across Indonesia, including communities in Sulawesi, Sabu, Timor, and Sumba.
Visitors can encounter the remarkable diversity of Indonesia’s textile traditions through works such as Sulawesi’s mud-dyed morilotong ikat, the distinctive ei raja and ei ledo textiles of Sabu, the complex tais of Timor, and the ceremonial hinggi cloths of Sumba. Basketry from Kalimantan further complements the display, highlighting the broader spectrum of traditional craft practices across the islands.
To accompany the opening of the exhibition, visitors also had the opportunity to attend a talk by Threads of Life co-founder William Ingram, who shared insights into the organisation’s long-standing work with artisan communities across the archipelago.
In addition, the exhibition marks the premiere of Mother of The Blue Darkness, a documentary produced by Threads of Life in collaboration with Asa Films. The film follows a family in Sumba who continue to practise ancestral traditions of indigo dyeing, weaving, and interpreting the symbolic narratives embedded within textiles. Through the rhythms of daily life, it offers a close reflection on cultural continuity and what it means to be Sumbanese today.
Mother of The Blue Darkness forms part of Tradition Keepers, a six-part documentary series capturing the quiet resilience of communities across Indonesia who continue to safeguard ancestral knowledge. The series will be released gradually on the Threads of Life YouTube channel in the coming months.
Textiles accompany individuals from birth through to death, appearing in ceremonies, rites of passage, and everyday community rituals. Each piece reveals a unique worldview, expressed through intricate motifs, weaving structures, and traditional dyeing techniques that carry stories of ancestral relationships, connections to the natural environment, and ever-present cultural values.
Through this exhibition and film series, Threads of Life invites audiences to appreciate textiles beyond as objects of beauty, but also as living expressions of identity and heritage: threads that continue to connect and guide communities across Indonesia today.
