A suzani is a large, hand-embroidered textile panel; the word comes from the Persian word suzan, which means needle. Originating from nomadic tribes in Tajikistan, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, and other Central Asian countries, suzanis have become highly collectible and valued for their beautiful decoration and fine craftsmanship. In recent years, we've witnessed a remarkable revival of this old traditional art form.
In the nineteenth century, Uzbek women produced fabulous embroidered hangings, bed covers, wrapping cloths, table covers, and prayer mats for their households and their daughters' dowries. As the Soviet era ended and Westerners became more familiar with the finest old Uzbek pieces, prices for antique examples escalated wildly.
A revival of the old forms and techniques was a natural development as new markets opened. Now gorgeous contemporary embroideries decorate not only Uzbek homes, but also grace European and American households, while talented and industrious Uzbek women have a welcome new source of family income. Fortunately, we now have access to beautiful contemporary textiles that are a natural outgrowth of the old traditions--at very reasonable prices.
Overall, suzanis were already a popular commodity by the end of the 19th century, their quality and originality suffering as a result. By carrying out the embroidery with a tambour hook (which somewhat resembles a crochet hook) on fabric stretched across a hoop, this rather laborious craft could be carried out with much more ease and speed. By adapting the designs to the taste of foreign buyers primarily from Russia and England, suzanis produced at that time had already forfeited any real originality.
The advent of the sewing machine around 1870, which was almost concurrent with the introduction of synthetic aniline dyes, led to a further impoverishment of original techniques, patterns, and richness of colors used. During Soviet rule, the production of suzanis became increasingly mechanized and the embroidered covers were produced on a large scale in kolkhozes specializing in this skill. Favorite themes were special holidays and non-religious motifs. During this time, suzanis almost stopped being popular export items.
The collapse of the Soviet Union saw a surge in tourism and an increased interest in Uzbek crafts from the West. Even today, the renaissance of this traditional craft is still being strongly promoted by the dictatorial regime of Ismail Karimov. A new suzani industry has emerged that is guided by old patterns, techniques, fabrics, and motifs. Unfortunately these new works – despite the fact that they are masterfully crafted and rooted in old traditions – lack a certain charm and esprit: they are frequently too uniform, too perfect, too standardized.
Hand-woven fabrics are used for embroidery foundation cloth. These fabrics are woven in narrow strips. Most current-day pieces are a silk/cotton blend: a silk warp is most usual, with cotton wefts. In some satin-weave pieces, the weft is also silk. Occasional ground fabrics are all cotton, especially for pieces expected to get hard use, such as horse covers. The fabrics are often lightly dyed to produce a soft beige tint--a so-called "tea wash." Occasionally other colors are used for the ground fabrics.
For large suzanis, several of the fabric strips are first sewn loosely together and the pattern is drawn on them; then they are taken apart so that two or more family members or friends can work on the embroidery simultaneously. Later when the panels are rejoined, the pattern parts may not match perfectly, and extra stitches may be added in the areas along the seams. It's the old, traditional approach in this hand-crafted art form.
Graceful floral motifs dominate in Uzbek suzanis--both in nineteenth-century pieces and in modern work. In a bleak desert landscape, oasis and courtyard gardens are especially cherished, and so plants, blossoms, and vines of all types appear in the needlework, as well as occasional fish and birds. Old traditional abstracted forms also appear in palmettes, rosettes, and pomegranates. Medallions are nearly always flowered forms,
although there is speculation that some large roundels may have represented the sun or moon in past times. Ottoman brocades and embroidery designs have always been highly regarded in Central Asia, and so dramatic Ottoman tulip designs have been appearing as well in contemporary embroideries.
Today suzanis are categorized according to provenance, allowing museum pieces that have a clear regional style to be attributed correctly. However, there are numerous examples that have no clear style, which can only be categorized by weighing up every aspect and characteristic and following one’s instincts. Suzanis from Bukhara are particularly rich in variety: the stitching is delicate, the color palette rich, and there is a remarkable depth of detail. Nuratasuzanis are for the most part beige-colored with a slew of colorful plants and flowers. Samarkand suzanis tend to be more symmetrical in design, frequently have large motifs exhibiting a reduced color palette of black, beige, and red. The Tashkent style is defined by expansively embroidered shapes, usually characterized by red, circular, fully filled-out designs, believed by experts to originate from old astral, pre-Islamic concepts. Generally, older suzanis from the late 18th and 19th centuries, similar to Oriental carpets, have a strong central design with an ornamental border. Contemporary suzanis do not adhere to this design scheme so rigidly.
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