African Painted and Dyed Cloth

Assembled by Lorena Montgomery

Historical / Cultural Significance

Textiles, like any other art form, can be viable for economic, political, social, or religious reasons. Traditionally, the demand for certain textiles was for religious reasons, for some cloths were worn as symbols of position and power. Today, however, the main purpose of pattern-dying and printing is to produce one-of-a-kind textiles. Africans wear these textiles in ways that communicate a variety of messages. Some are worn for prestigious value, while others are worn for more personal reasons, such as funerals and weddings. Printed cloth was made by many people of east and west Africa. In east Africa, particularly in Kenya and Tanzania, the first examples of cloth date from around 1817.

Principles and Elements of Design

Color, line, and shape are evident.

Technique/Methodology:

Block-printed fabrics were made by dipping relief-carved wooden blocks into natural dyes and pressing them onto woven cotton cloth. Cloth could also be machine-printed by the engraved roller process. This process consists of engraving a design on a sheet of copper called a plate. A plate was made for each color. The plates were put on a roller and rolled by machine one by one on the cloth.

The Yoruba of Nigeria employed both tie-dying and a starch-resist process to create adire cloth-the name given to Yoruba indigo-dyed fabrics. In tie-dying, patterns are made by tying the cloth in various ways. When the cloth is dipped into the dye, the dye does not completely penetrate the knots, pleats, or places where sticks and stones were sewn in. When the knots are removed the pattern on the cloth is visible. In the starch-resist process, patterns and designs would be designed free-hand (by women) or stencilled (by men) onto the cloth with cassaba starch, a substance obtained from cassabe flower. When the fabric was dyed, the dye would penetrate everywhere except the starch areas.

Bokolanfini, or mud cloth, was and is a popular commodity in Mali. Narrow strips of white cloth are dyed yellow. Mud is applied to one side of the cloth, which creates a dark background for a yellow pattern. After the cloth has dried, it is dipped in water to wash off the mud. When it has dried a second time, the process is repeated. Finally, a mixture of peanuts, caustic soda, millet bran, and water is applied to the cloth to remove the yellow dye. The cloth is then dried in the sun for a week. The finished cloth has a white design on a dark background.

Introduce students to African tribal music. Play sound recordings during class activities and/or have students learn an African song that they can sing. The sound recording, "Gift of the Tortoise: A Musical Journey Through Southern Africa" contains many great songs and can also be used to incorporate drama. It would make an excellent narrative pantomime and could be built into a dramatic performance that students could present in front of the school and parents.