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Francophone African Textile Gallery Part One |
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this page we introduce you to a few of the many textile traditions of
the French-speaking countries of West Africa, specifically Burkina Faso,
Cote D'Ivoire, Togo, Benin, Niger, and Mali. With few exceptions there
has been no systematic collection of textiles in these countries, and
old pieces are only sporadically available as yet.
Working with textile dealers in Ghana we have been encouraging the collection of cloths in Côte D'Ivoire with increasingly interesting results. In particular we have been encouraged to obtain a number of very unusual cloths from the area near the Ghana border centred on the town of Bondoukou, which was an important weaving centre in the C18th and 19th and a key point on the old trade route linking the Asante capital of Kumase north-westwards through Kong to the trade of the Sahara and Sahel. It is an ethnically diverse town with Dioula, Abron, Kulango and other inhabitants. The significance of Bondoukou for the development of Asante weaving has been suggested by Cole and Ross (1977:38) who note in particular that it was a source for plain blue and white cloths imported by the Asante. Lamb (1980) notes that weft faced bands, called "babadua" were also woven at Bondoukou and illustrates two rather simple examples. However very little is known about the nature of weaving in the town itself. Although we have not as yet been able to go there and undertake any research due to the unstable situation in Côte D'Ivoire the cloths we have collected indicate both a highly sophisticated use of blue and white hand-spun cotton patterning, and perhaps more unexpectedly, the existence of at least one and perhaps more complex styles which are related to but distinctly different from Asante and Ewe kente weaving in Ghana. Among the features of this major style that differ from the Ghanaian are: a handspun cotton blue and white ground combined with imported machine spun cotton weft patterning; a preference for a linear alignment of designs across the cloth rather than alternate placing between adjacent strips; and a repertoire of float patterning that shades towards Baule, Guro, and Dioula motifs in central Côte D'Ivoire. A second style favours a more random placement of weft faced bands.
Click on the image below for an introduction and background reading list.
As with all our cloths we guarantee a full refund if you are not satisfied with any order. CLICK on the images for a bigger picture plus full details of size and condition for each cloth, together with ordering information. Please be patient as the images may take a minute to download.
(c) Duncan Clarke, Version 7/22/2008 |
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