Dazzle and diversity of Malay textile world shines in a new exhibition

'Kelingkam' is a traditional embroidery technique that employs the use of a flat metallic ribbon coated with a gold or silver film, on fabrics like satin, damask and velvet. Photo: The Star/Ong Soon Hin

No one can say that Asian art historian and textile collector John Ang doesn’t dream big.

His latest – and most ambitious – exhibition Splendours Of Malay World Textiles at Menara Ken in TTDI, Kuala Lumpur, gathers 700 textiles that are divided into 12 major categories of textile techniques.