FABRICS TEXTILE: The Kente Cloth and the Adinkra Cloth
GHANA, W. AFRICA
Designs on cloth
The cloth is one of the commonest medians of expressing Ghanaian symbolic art. The Kente is one of the two ceremonial cloths among the Akans; whereas the Kente is used on joyful occasions, the Adinkra is worn when people are grieving. The Adinkra patterns or figures are stamped, but are woven in the case of the kente. Adinkra designs are made in the dozens.
Kente symbols are mostly geometrical. Significant meanings such as “Adwinasa", a word which means the artists’ skill is exhausted, or that his ideas are finished. These designs are woven by masters of the weaving trade. The aforementioned designs were only worn in the past on Ashanti by the Asantehene. Other Adinkra symbol such as the symbol of God’s omnipotence is a very common symbol in Ghana. Others include the Symbol of Hope and of Wisdom. The ram’s head or horns symbolize innocence or guilt lessens as the sheep is said to be a peaceful and guiltless animal. It is useful for sacrificial purposes.
The leg of a fowl is the symbol of a parent, or guardian who is strict in dealing with his children without being brutal to them. There is an Akan proverb that goes like this, “A hen may tread upon her chicks, but does not kill them.” It is also the symbol of absolute confidence in God. Such figures stamped upon a white cloth may show who should wear it, when he should wear it, how closely related he is to the deceased, his sex, etc.
Color
Color has a rich symbolism in Ghana. Gold or yellow among the Akan; Ga and Eve especially represent royalty, continuous life, prosperity, warmth, glory, maturity, prime of life, and the presence of God. White represents purity, virtue, virginity, joy and victory. Green represents newness, fertility, vitality, and primness in growth. The Fante and the Ga employ the green color a lot during puberty ceremonies. Black symbolizes vice, deep feelings of melancholy, the devil, death and their power over life and old age. Objects dedicated to the dead are usually colored black.
Red is used in occasions of melancholy, death of a relative, wars, national anger, violence, or sudden calamity. Blue is the color for love and female tenderness. It is likened to the serene appearance of the crescent moon in the sky. It is often used to signify the rule of queen-mothers. The color blue association with love is found especially among the Ewe in the connections with a love charm called “sekposale” or “likpandu”. Gray seems to indicate blame, degradation, and shamefulness. The combination of red and yellow colors stands for life and its power over sickness. Green combined with white stands for a bountiful harvest.
Kente- The cloth of Kings
An Ancient craft
For thousands of years, skilled artisans have employed the ancient craft of weaving. Threads spun from flax, cotton and silk have always provided a ready source of weaving materials. Basic colors were extracted from roots and plant leaves, giving weavers the ability to create simple designs and patterns in their work. Weavers among the nomadic peoples of Africa devised looms that were small and easily transported from place to place known as strip looms, they have produced a narrow strip of cloth only three to five inches in width. These long, narrow lengths of fabric were then sewn together, edge to edge, to create a larger cloth that could be wrapped around the body as a garment. Portable strip looms were carried on the backs of pack animals across the deserts, through rivers, and over high mountain ranges, transported along ancient trade routes. The strip loom had a profound influence on the people it touched.
The desire for the cloth
West African Kings and chiefs controlled the mineral-rich land that the European explorers called the Gold Coast for many centuries. Large amounts of Gold were mind, bringing wealth to the ruling Ashanti Kings and their royal households adorned with heavy gold jewelry and wrapped in specially woven cloth, these kings and their prominent chiefs made a display of their wealth, power and authority before their subjects.
The unique cloth these rulers wore cam to be called “Kente”, a word that may have alluded to the cloths similarity to the weave of a basket. Other Gold Coast tribes also practiced strip weaving, but for the Ashanti Kings, kente cloth came to represent prestige and royal status. Gold Coast strip weavers used locally spun cotton. Only yarn dyed blue was available. These blue threads were woven into the dull white of the cotton cloth to produce lines and blocks in simple geometric patterns for the local people.
The finer weaving of the King’s royal kente cloth was restricted. Skilled royal weaving groups were established to create and produce high-quality material. The weaving technique was a jealousy guarded and a well kept secret. All other weavers were forbidden to weave the textile patterns and designs that were exclusively for the king and his royal court. The King accumulated hundreds of cloth, each with its own unique design and pattern. Traditionally he would never wear the same cloth in public more than once.
The quest for color
Another type of cloth began to appear on the Gold Coast in the 16th century. This new cloth was not woven on African strip looms, but produced in distant lands and brought by the first European sailors searching for ivory, gold, and slaves. The imported cloth contained threads of bright, eye-catching colors. Soon, this imported cloth, woven richly with red, yellow, and green threads became a valued trading commodity. Few had the wealth to obtain such expensive cloth from the European traders. Only the rich Ashanti, who controlled the flow of gold, ivory, and slaves to the sailing ships waiting at the coast, had the means to obtain it. But the woven cloth was not what the Ashanti King and his chiefs desired.
Once the cloth was obtained, the weavers painstakingly unraveled and removed the coveted threads, discarding the remaining cloth. These precious threads were then rewoven on the strip looms of the royal weavers. As the color range of materials increased, the initiative and innovation blossomed, prompting the craftsmen to express their creative and technical skills in cloth as never before. Skilled weavers from other tribes were employed by the Ashanti Kings, resulting in the production of kente cloth of unmatched quality.
Geometric patterns that resembled fish, birds, fruits, leaves, sunsets, rainbows, and other images of nature formed a textile art that was minutely detailed and contained symbolic meaning. Cloth interwoven with Golden threads represented wealth; the color green conveyed the idea of freshness and newness. The color black symbolizes sadness, red shows anger and silver pictures purity and joy.
Weavers worked patiently and without haste for many, months on a single cloth, knowing that their finished work would be judged as a measurement of their skill and creative genius. Demand was low for such exquisite workmanship, only a few could afford to purchase rare and expensive kente cloth.
Modern Kente
With the passing of time, the influence of kings and powerful chiefs began to wane. There was no longer a need to separate royalty from commoner by a cloth. Demand for this beautiful fabric increased as it began to be used for non-royal purposes. Woven quickly to meet a greater demand, kente cloth began to decline in quality, workmanship, and price.
Today the majority of kente weaving is done with synthetic thread and is then used in the mass production of bags, ties, belts, hats and clothing. Few weavers are interested in producing kente cloth by means of the labor-intensive, time-consuming methods of the past. Old kente of superb quality is now treasured and passed on from generation to generation within families.
The making of a genuine cloth
In a flurry of speed, the weaver’s hands glide back and forth across the face of the cloth, moving to the rhythm of squeaking pulleys and creaking levers. The craftsman concentrates on the colorful strip of cloth that lies before him. He holds ropes between his toes; these ropes work the heddles harnesses that move up and down separating and guiding the vertical warp threads that stretch out twenty feet in front of the loom. Nimbly his fingers weave single strands of colorful silk horizontally into the separated warp threads, creating a weft pattern that is then beaten tightly into the finished fabric.
The piece of cloth that emerges is a mere four inches wide. It radiates with brilliant color and intricate patterns. A genuine Kente cloth has been created. The craftsmen smiles with satisfaction as he examines the masterpiece he has created.
THE ADINKRA CLOTH
(AUTHENTIC CLOTH)
VALUES OF THE ADINKRA SYMBOLS.
GHANA, W. AFRICA
The Adinkra Symbols are multi-functional in nature and have aesthetic and communicative values, which are mostly non-verbal illustrations of proverbs, parables and maxims which portray the philosophical thinking and the way of life of a particular group of people.
There is a cultural significance to the Adinkra Symbol, although most people appreciate the symbols on their aesthetic values only.
Adinkra Symbols were originally designed by craftsmen of old who did not use facilities that enhanced good design and as of date the symbols are still mostly presented in their original uneven outlined constructions.
All the names of the symbols are in Asante with literal translation given in English.
Studying the Adinkra Symbols from a Designers Perspective, I find them to be well constructed symbols, considering the principles of design which brings about uniformity and beauty.
There are philosophical, educational, historical and moral values inherent in the Adinkra Symbols.
Enjoy the Adinkra Symbols depicted in selected RF Signature Style Products and as the same time honor their symbolic meanings.
Kente and Adinkra clothes sizes: Due to the nature of clothes hand-woven, there is a slight variation in sizes. No cloth design size is the same.
Average Size
Large Size: Comes in one piece 11ft (132 cm) x 7ft (84 cm) Weight: 8Lbs/ Kg
Small Size: Comes in three pieces
1) 5’-8" (68") x 3'-3.5"(39") (172.72 cm x 99.06cm) 3Lbs/ 1.36 Kg
2) 5’-9” (69”) x 5’-9”(45”) (175.26 cm x 111.43cm) 3Lbs/1.36Kg
3) 5’-11” (71”) x 3’-9” (45”) (180.34cm x 111.43 cm) 3Lbs/ 1.36Kg
Adinkra Cloth Production
The Adinkra cloth is printed by creating lines with a wooden comb like tool in cotton fabric. Stamps made from calabash with Adinkra patterns cut on them are used to print on the fabric. The printing dye is made from the back of a tree known as “badie” and iron slags which is referred to as “etia”
The Adinkra come in different shades. The darker shades are mostly worn on funeral occasions to morn the dead; however the lighter shades could be worn on various occasions including happy ones.
