4
Page 8--The Michigan Doily-Thursday, January 14, 1988
Bold
'Shoowa
Textiles
' reveals African culture
By Lauren Shapiro
Intense bold geometric patterns
are the focus of the latest exhibit at
the University Museum of Art. The
show titled Shoowa Textiles com-
bines various kinds of craftwork in-
cluding the handmade textiles, cos-
tumes, masks, knives, and jewelry.
This wide range of objects composes
the most comprehensive exhibition
of African textile art ever promoted
in the United States.
Although many beautiful objects
are presented, the show focuses on
the textiles and their symbolic pat-
terns. The most renowned group of
textile artists remains the Shoowa,
whose name originated from the
words Sango Meno meaning
"pointed teeth." They have a reputa-
tion for the quality of their technique
and their cut-pile raffia textiles
known as mbal.
Until the time of colonization,
the Kuba maintained an extensive
trade through inter-tribal markets.
The city Loango was a center of
production for cut-pile textiles. The
Kuba used the textile squares as cur-
rency in trade within and outside the
country. During this period of time,
many Portuguese were coming into
Zaire to make trades with the
Shoowa people who valued their
cloths as heirlooms since social sta-
tus was reflected by their ownership.
Today, the textiles remain very
valuable since each one is handmade
with natural fibers and may take
more than a year for the Shoowa to
produce. In his catalogue about the
show, George Meurant describes the
initial impression of the Shoowa
textiles: "The first structuring of the
surface exploits the possibilities of
juxtaposing, interlocking, and
superimposing simple elements to
form motif." This unique feature of
the works is accomplished by cover-
ing the velvet surface of the textile
in cut-pile so that no individual tufts
are visible.
While most Kuba people practice
this form of embroidery, only the
Shoowa modulate the thickness of
the textile and thus, accentuate the
surface effects. The Shoowa were
able to enhance the total visual effect
of their works in this way by cutting
the velyet with a flat knife so that
depth could be varied. The curves
within the velvet are another charac-
teristic of the Shoowa textiles.
The textiles possess a richness
which is expressed not only through
colors like brown, gold , ginger, and
black, but also through intricate
patterns. These patterns reflect the
variety of motifs and potential sym-
bolic interpretations of the Shoowas'
work. Meurant explains that the
"patterns form abstract expressions,
leaving each individual to understand
the symbols in his own way, as he
does the world."
Many of the designs may actually
be traced back to the scarification
patterns of the Shoowa women. The
textiles reflect the esteemed place of
women in the Shoowa society. Not
only do the Shoowa observe ma-
trillineal descent, but their division
of labor is inter-dependent. Accord-
ing to Meurant, "a man cannot live
without a woman and vice versa."
Generally, men wove the background
raffia cloth, usually dyed yellow, or-
ange, or red, while women threaded
thick tufts of fine raffia, softened by
hand, to form complex geometric
designs. Meurant refers to the sym-
bols created by these designs as
"rectilinear graphic language" which
allude to the cosmological and social
order within the Shoowa culture.
Modern artists like Mondrian and
Vasarely have interpreted these pat-
terns representing orders within
Shoowa society. The textiles look
remarkably contemporary in their
bold and colorful expression. Henri
Matisse himself was a great admirer
of the intricate graphic designs cre-
ated by the Shoowa people and
combined their theories in several of
his works.
SHOOWA TEXTILES will be at the
University Museum of Art through
February 7. The exhibit will also be
the subject of several free Art Breaks
at the museum, today and February 2
and 4. Sunday tours are January 17
and 24. The museum is open
Tuesday - Friday 10 a.m. - 4
p.m. and Saturday and Sunday 1-
S p.m. Admission is free. For
further information call 764-0395.
Join
the
Daily
Arts
Page
Call: 763-0379
'Shoowa Textiles,' focuses on the intense bold geometric patterns of
various kinds of craftwork of the Shoowa people of Zaire. The craft-
works include handmade textiles, costumes, masks, knives, and
jewelry.
Records
(Continued from Page 7)
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Jimmy Swaggart says that rock
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RCA Records
Nobody would have expected a
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4
THE
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If only Dave Stewart's multi-instrumental support were as vivid as
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