Some things are made once.

Kala Reserve holds a small number of works by India’s master artisans, among them national award winners, and releases them to collectors by private preview only.

Many take months to make by hand.

This season’s reserve
Three works, one released
The viewing
By virtual private preview
Access
Requested, and reviewed personally
Request a private preview

This season’s reserve

Three works. One released to private view, two still with their makers. Each is placed once.

  1. Himachal Pradesh, India

    Naksh

    Artisan
    Padma Shri, named at viewing
    Technique
    Dorukha silk embroidery
    Origin
    The Himalayan foothills
    Time invested
    340 hours

    Available for private viewingDetails

  2. Withheld

    Withheld

    Artisan
    Withheld
    Technique
    Withheld
    Origin
    Withheld
    Time invested
    Withheld

    In the hands of its maker

  3. Withheld

    Withheld

    Artisan
    Withheld
    Technique
    Withheld
    Origin
    Withheld
    Time invested
    Withheld

    In the hands of its maker

The makers are introduced at the viewing, not on the internet.

The artisans in this reserve are recognised with national honours for their crafts. Their names are not published here. They are given to you during your private preview, together with the work itself, and they pass to the custodian on acquisition.

It keeps the circle small and the conversation about the work: the hands, the months, and the materials, rather than a listing.

Read the first work in full: Naksh

Three meanings, one word

Reserve as sanctuary

As a nature reserve protects a species, we exist to keep a small number of techniques from disappearing before the world notices they’re gone.

Reserve as treasury

Every piece is made by hand, and many are one of one. Nothing here is restocked, so what you acquire is a store of scarcity.

Reserve as invitation

Nothing here is for open sale. Access is requested, reviewed personally, and extended, by us, not by a cart.

How a private preview works

Four steps, none of them automated. A person reads every request, and a person conducts every viewing.

  1. You request a preview

    Tell us who you are and what draws you to the reserve. It takes two minutes, and it is a request for a viewing, not a purchase.

  2. We review it personally

    Every request is read by us. We reply from preview@kalareserve.com, whether or not we are able to offer a place.

  3. Your virtual private preview

    An appointment at a time that suits where you are. The work is shown to you closely, its maker is introduced, and you hear how it was made and what it took.

  4. Custody

    Pricing is given on application. If you take the work, it is released with its ledger entry, the maker’s signature and a certificate of provenance, and delivery is arranged and insured with you before anything moves.

What passes with the work

The ledger
Every released work carries a numbered entry in the reserve’s ledger. We hold one record and you hold the other.
The signature
The maker signs the work. Her name, and the honours she holds, are given to the custodian and held between us.
The certificate
A certificate of provenance, issued on acquisition, setting out the technique, the materials and the hours invested.
The delivery
Arranged individually and insured, confirmed with you in writing before the work leaves our hands.

Request a private preview.

Every request is reviewed personally. Accepted requests receive a virtual private preview, by appointment.

This is a request for a viewing, not a purchase. There is no obligation to acquire.