A brick is a block made of clay burnt in a kiln. It is one of the primary building materials known to mankind. Over time, bricks have appeared, gained prominence, lost importance and then come to the forefront again with various styles of architecture. Burnt bricks were used in ancient Indian, Babylon, Egypt and Roman civilizations. They are still being used as filler materials for framework structures as well as to construct load bearing structures. Down the ages, there have been various interesting historic and cultural references to bricks.
Brick kiln labourers form a large portion of workers in the informal sector in India. Workers, who are usually from the poorest sections of Indian society, are recruited against a loan by labour contractor or employer, which they have to repay by working for them. However, as they lose control over the debt and cannot leave until the employer decides when it’s paid off, they cannot realistically leave the ‘employment’. They are bonded labours.
The working and living conditions are sometimes extremely harsh. As workers usually live within the kiln, there are high levels of hazardous substances such as arsenic, burnt plastic and dust. Workers, including children, are frequently injured at work. The average working day consists of 15-16 hours and the great majority of children do not attend school or have any play time. The accommodation is usually overcrowded, commonly with several families living together in one single room, with outdoor toilets.
Kiln workers have little or no knowledge of their basic rights, entitlements and bonded labour prohibitions. Being from the most vulnerable segments of society and lacking organisation, bonded labourers remain “invisible” to the authorities.
Tags: wbk photography wbk well-bred kannan muthuraman kannan Nikon Nikon D750 D750 India Indian weekend walk “Incredible India” “Travel Photography” Travel Traveler MSB ”Madras Shutterbugs” Portrait Women Portraiture People brick works Brick Kiln Brick Factory Brick Workers Brick Factory Workers Hard Life
Using the Fast to Cut Storm at Sea templates to make this design can get tedious, because most of the blocks are trimmed, actually they're trimmed several times! However, when you go to put it all together, it's well worth all of the trimming :) Also, because I'm using muslin and madras, or light weight woven plaids, the fabrics are thinner and press out so nicely. Love this design! I did go with the stars to give some focus with all of these plaids :)
On a personal note - my daughter & son's book (SuperDylan and the Powers of Just Right) is selling on Amazon! For those of you who have supported my kids in this endeavor, thank you very much! I think that, if you have a child, know a child, or recall being a child yourself, you'll enjoy this book :) Also, the book is now available as a Kindle download and if you're an Amazon Prime Member, it's Free!
© All Rights Reserved
Ready to sew these together! Love this block and need to make it more often :)
© All Rights Reserved
Nairobi National Park, Kenya
Tags: Nairobi Kenya Nairobi National Park Maasai Masai