Ordinary commercially woven cloth is transformed by hand dying with locally made indigo dye. To create the elaborate patterns of adire, the artist blocks the dye from reaching the surface of the cloth. This is done by painting or stenciling with a starch such as cassava paste, or by tying or sewing knots and seams. This undyed cloth still bears the resist material painted in the sun bébé or "lifting up the beads" pattern, which represents the movement of the strings of beads young girls wear around their hips.
Adire was first produced in quantity in the late 19th century, with production dwindling by World War II. The 1960s saw a revived interest in adire with new patterns and new uses superceding the original use as women's wrappers.
Description:
Wrapper composed of a rectangular panel of cotton cloth painted with cassava paste in a pattern of 16 large blocks that are divided in squares, circular motifs, or circular motifs and diagonal panels.
Provenance:
Jane Barbour, acquired in Abeokuta, Nigeria, 1969 to 1996
Exhibition History:
Adire: Resist-Dyed Cloths of the Yoruba, National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., April 16-August 17, 1997
Published References:
National Museum of African Art. 1997. Adire: Resist-Dyed Cloths of the Yoruba. Exhibition brochure. Washington, D.C.: National Museum of African Art, Smithsonian Institution, no. 16.
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