Wrapper
This wrapper has been hand-woven on the traditional Igbo Akwete woman’s vertical loom with machine spun cotton yarns. Black, white, and red yarns were used to create the pattern. Typically the design motifs on Akwete cloths are created by a supplementary weft structure on a warp-face plain-weave ground. This textile is an exception. The wrapper has complementary sections of plaid and checked patterns that are created by the particular sequence of the differently colored warps and wefts. This patterning is partly created when the weaver places the differently colored yarns on the loom and the patterning is completed when she adds the weft yarns in different ratios, according to the pre-planned design she has in mind.
This work represents a classic textile genre designed, woven, and worn by Igbo women in one of Nigeria's premier centers for textile weaving. Textiles are one of the preeminent forms of visual expression in sub-Saharan Africa, and Akwete weavers have had an important impact on the region at large. Their frequently elaborate and complex supplementary weft-float patterns are of particular interest for their variety, incorporating abstract geometric and figurative motifs. This wrapper stands out for the unusual weaving technique employed and its distinctive plaited motifs.
This work represents a classic textile genre designed, woven, and worn by Igbo women in one of Nigeria's premier centers for textile weaving. Textiles are one of the preeminent forms of visual expression in sub-Saharan Africa, and Akwete weavers have had an important impact on the region at large. Their frequently elaborate and complex supplementary weft-float patterns are of particular interest for their variety, incorporating abstract geometric and figurative motifs. This wrapper stands out for the unusual weaving technique employed and its distinctive plaited motifs.
Artwork Details
- Title: Wrapper
- Artist: Women's weaving cooperative in Akwete (Nigerian)
- Artist: Ndoki-Igbo artist
- Date: early 1990s
- Geography: Nigeria, Akwete
- Culture: Igbo peoples
- Medium: Cotton, dye
- Dimensions: W. 45 × L. 83 1/4 in. (114.3 × 211.5 cm)
- Classification: Textiles-Woven
- Credit Line: Gift of Robert and Anita LaGamma, 2015
- Object Number: 2015.649
- Curatorial Department: The Michael C. Rockefeller Wing
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Women's weaving cooperative in Akwete
Ndoki-Igbo artist
early 1990s
Women's weaving cooperative in Akwete
early 1990s
Women's weaving cooperative in Akwete
Ndoki-Igbo artist
early 1990s
Women's weaving cooperative in Akwete
Ndoki-Igbo artist
early 1990s
Women's weaving cooperative in Akwete
Ndoki-Igbo artist
early 1990s
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