Come see the exhibit Colors of the Oasis: Central Asian Ikats at the Seattle Asian Art Museum (SAAM) and enter to win a trip to Uzbekistan! Entries are being accepted at the Seattle Asian Art Museum during May, June and July, 2012. For details and qualifications, see the Official Rules for contest terms and conditions. The winner will be randomly selected during the first week in August and notified via phone or email.

Exuberant clothes were a common sight in the oasis cities of Central Asia, the crossroads where goods and people flowed in from India, China, Iran and Russia. During the 19th century, oasis patrons wore robes fashioned with rich colors and mysterious designs. This tradition led to a flourishing use of ikat (ee-kat). Ikat fabrics are made from individually dyed silk strands woven by hand in a labor-intensive process. The “Colors of the Oasis” exhibition recreates a sense of walking into a crowd of cosmopolitan clients who wear ikat robes of distinctive boldness.

As an English visitor (William Eleroy Curtis) wrote in 1911: “Everybody wears a coat like a rainbow… No matter how humble or hungry a man may be, and even if he has but a single garment, it is made of the most brilliantly colored material he can find.”

The ikat exhibit at SAAM includes over 40 robes and provides a vision of the oasis crowd. Some feature sharp graphic designs of rigorous abstraction, but others favor delicate harmonies with flowing floral motifs. Scorpions and Arabic script, paisleys and European florals, jeweled tassels and cypress trees swirl together in a design pool that reflects oasis life.

While you are visiting the glorious Colors of the Oasis exhibition, stop at the Garden Court and enter to win the trip for two to the heart of Central Asia, where you can see the land where the ikat robes were created. The fully-escorted, 15-day small-group tour Silk Route Odyssey: Caravan Across Uzbekistan, courtesy of the exhibition sponsor MIR Corporation. See contest details, rules and exclusions to find out more about your chance to win this amazing trip.

Free Days at SAAM

• First Thursday: Admission to the Seattle Asian Art Museum is free for everone on the first Thursday of each month.
• Second Thursday: The Seattle Asian Art Museum is taking part in the new Capitol Hill art walk, Blitz, on the second Thursday of every month. Admission is free for everyone from 5 to 9 pm.
• First Fridays for Seniors: Admission to the Seattle Asian Art Museum is free for seniors 62 and over on the first Friday of each month.
• First Saturdays for Families: Admission to the Seattle Asian Art Museum is free for families on the first Saturday of each month .