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Introduction
Protection, prestige, power, beauty and pure decoration are some of the ways various cultures use textiles. This commonality permits all people to appreciate the textiles of West Africa. Inspiration for design is derived from their culture and spiritual world in almost everything Africans make: spoons, carved calabashes (gourds), gold weights, pendants, the designs in pottery and on mud walls, the details on carved house posts or on masks, as well as in the traditionally patterned fabrics of Africa. This exhibit includes costumes, fabrics, hats, jackets and textile masks which contain classic examples of traditional African textiles and textile designs. It provides a unique opportunity to learn about Africa, its costumes and its cultures. Africans often wear their art, which is rich in visual symbols. The designs carry meanings integral to the cultures: the coiled snake supports the world; should the snake become uneasy, his nervous undulations cause earthquakes. The symbolism, in this example, comes from the Fon people of Benin. The famous motifs of the Bambara people of the Ivory Coast include antelope heads, turtles, lizards, snakes, fish, a mask and geometric images. The use of these fabrics did more than merely cover the body, the motifs also represented a person's rank. Stories were told with each symbol and decorative line. In Zaire, men produce 20-foot lengths of fabric made from beaten palm; the naturally tan colored material is applied and stitched with dyed raffia thread and may only be worn by the King and his wives. Silk Kente cloth from Ghana is woven in a pattern of stripes and decorated squares, with each square telling a tale. African cloth is often woven on a loom, which produces a strip from 1« to 12 inches wide. These strips are then sewn together to form large textiles, blankets and clothing. The strips may be plain, using undyed homespun cotton, or beautifully intricate and colorful. Materials may include cotton (homespun or commercially made), silk (wild and homespun, or unraveled thread from oriental cloth) or synthetics. The use of appliqu‚, tie-dye, resist dye and painting are also used in the creation of these textiles. Western designers have "discovered" African textiles and are now copying some of these patterns and techniques. Even recent historical events can be the inspiration for new patterns, which, if they are popular, become standard and traditional. Our display honors the creativity and artistry of these mostly unknown
African craftsmen.
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