Stitched Into Memory

Welcome to the project blog for Stitched Into memory, an arts education initiative teaching ancient West African textile arts to Boston youth. Lead by artist and educator Stephen Hamilton ,with the generous support of the New England Foundation for the arts and In collaboration with the Friends of Fort Point this project will celebrate and commemorate the historic and contemporary African Diaspora communities of Boston

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Join us fpr the opening celebration of Stitched Into Memory!!! Celebrate the incredible collaborative work of young Artists from around Boston. The event will take place from 2-5pm at 290 congress st Boston, Ma on Saturday July 29th!!!

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Stitched Into Memory is complete and installed! I am incredibly proud of my amazing team of talented artists! Please come check it out at waterfront square  290 congress st, Boston MA!

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Pattern Weaving and Embroidery

Hello Everyone and welcome back! Although it has been a while since we have posted rest assured we have been hard at work finishing “Stitched into Memory” our large scale installation drawn from  traditional West African textile traditions. During the last month participants have been working on pattern weaving and embroidery techniques incorporating the cloths and yarns we dyed in the previous units. Check out some of the textile traditions that inspired the works created by our participants.

Nigerian Women’s Weaving:

 These pieces were inspired the various upright loom weaving traditions of southern Nigeria. Yoruba, Igbo ,Edo, Nupe and Ebira Women (and rarely men) have used this loom to make both domestic, ritual and prestige cloths for centuries.  Below from left to right: Tatiana posing next to her weaving of an Itagbe with variations of the Atapo (stool) pattern, Adriana with her embroidered Gara cloth and Jordan next to his weaving of an Itagbe (Sash) with both the koranic board (Waala) and fingernail (Eekono) Pattern. 

Below: Close ups of the Pattern Weaving created by Tatiana, Jordan and Tony

Below : A woman from Ijebu Ode weaving an elaborate piece of Aso Olona  the prestige cloth worn by the Ogboni elders.

 Tie and Dyed Striped Handwoven Cloth:

These Pieces are inspired by the handwoven over dyed striped textiles made by Dioula and Baule artisans of the Ivory coast. Below: Textiles made by our students and Dioula textiles that inspired the pieces.

  Embroidery:

 These pieces are inspired by the many embroidery traditions of west and east  Africa

Below: Adriana working on freehand patterns.

Below: Isaac working on freehand patterns

Below: Ishrat Working on a Piece inspired East African (Swahili and Ethiopian) embroidery.

 Below : Wilton holding his finished embroidered adire and the embroidered Yoruba Women's Wrapper that inspired it.The patterns are common in Nigerian embroidery especially among the Hausa, Nupe and Yoruba. 

Stay tuned! Our full installation will be on display at 290 congress st in Boston, Ma This July!!

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Hello everyone! This past week our team dyed the Adire and yarns we have been preparing over the last month. All the hours of tying and stitching culminated with us dyeing using indigo and Guinea Corn leaves (Oka Baba). We were blessed with perfect weather and some beautifully dyed Items that will be incorporated into the final installation. The pieces incorporated dyeing techniques from all over west Africa including “Adire Alabere” (stitch resist) techniques from Nigeria. “Gara” kola nut and Indigo over dyeing techniques from Gambia and Sierra Leone and over dyed tie and dye handwoven textiles drawn from Dyula and Baule textiles from the Ivory coast. Stay tuned as our project continues to develop!     

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EVERYONE WHO HAS A CHANCE AND LIVES IN THE BOSTON AREA!!!! COME LEARN ABOUT ADIRE AT OUR PUBLIC INDIGO DYEING EVENT!! Next sunday we will be publically dyeing pieces pieces my students have been working on for the past two months! Come and learn about this ancient tradition! Special thanks to chief Nike Monica Okundaye and Ms Agnes Umeche for teaching me these artforms! Be sure to check out stitchedintomemory.tumblr.com for more updates!

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Project Update!

Work on the final project has commenced and our young artists are busy creating the pieces that will be used in the final textile installation. Student are using the skills that they have learned during the first weeks of training to start work on the woven and dyed pieces that we will need.

Below: Adriana, and Tony working on pieces to be dyed in kola-nut solution.

Below: The untied pieces, after dyeing in kola-nut. These pieces will later be re-tied and dyed indigo.

Below: Jordan and Luis getting in the hang of using the full sized Nigerian upright loom. 

Below: Ishrat working on a smaller cloth on a miniature loom.

Below: Tatiana wearing an Ipele (sash) she wove herself.

Stay tuned more More Updates!

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Weaving Part 2: Patterns

Hello Everyone

Over the past week we have been exploring the various patterning techniques used in West african weaving traditions. More specifically we have been exploring the supplementary weft or weft float patterning technique that is used in textile traditions throughout west Africa.  This technique involves inserting a set of extra wefts through designated evenly spaced warps to create a pattern floating on top of the cloth. By picking up very specific warps separated by an added shed stick or headle one can created a myriad of different patterns as can be seen in the famous aso olona and akwete styled cloths created by the women of  Ijebu Ode and Akwete respectively. Students used an added shed stick to  experiment with creating simple weft float patterns on smaller pieces of Aso ofi made on their practice looms. See how Tatiana, Isaac, Namie, Ishrat and Luis used these Techniques below.

Another traditions frequently used by both male and female weavers in Nigeria and Benin republic is the openwork weaving technique known as “alajere” or “Jawu” this technique involves sectioning even numbers of warps and using separate weft for each section of warps. The tension created by this process pulls the warps apart and creates holes in the finished cloth. You can see how Jordan Is using this technique below. 

Stay tuned as we continue our journey through the world of west African Textile traditions!

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More weaving! Practicing supplementary weft patterning before we move on to the full sized loom.

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Intro to weaving: Week 3

This week we are focusing on the rich and varied weaving traditions of west Africa.  There are numerous weaving traditions that have been developed and used throughout the African continent. The weaving technique that we will cover in this unit is the broad upright loom weaving technique used in southern Nigeria, Benin Republic and Cameroon. This technique was used to create numerous ritual, prestige and domestic textiles, that were used locally and exported throughout west and central Africa. Primarily ( often exclusively) women used this loom as opposed to the narrow strip loom that was exclusively used by men until the mid-late twentieth century. The prestigious Aso-Olona cloths used by the ogboni society of the Yoruba people are part of this tradition as are the blue and white textiles from the former Benin empire  that were exported to european traders in vast quantities. I studied weaving in Ogidi Ijumu at the the Nike center for art and culture under my teacher, master weaver Mrs Agnes Umeche ,who was born in the neighboring town of Okene a historic center for weaving arts.

Below: Mrs Agnes Umeche and her work

 It is an honor  to be able to teach this art to students here in the United States. For now we are practicing using a modified handheld version of the loom made from sanded canvas stretchers. Apprentices would use a similar practice loom made from an upturned stool or calabash when they first started out.  

Below : A Yoruba woman setting an upright loom, Ihaka  and Jordan setting their practice looms.

I am excited to see how the work they are doing translates to their larger pieces on a full sized loom. These traditions were once very widespread in Nigeria. In fact in the igbo village of Akwete all women were expected to weave. The Yoruba towns of Owo,Ilorin and Ijebu Ode and the Ebira town of Okene were also renowned for their textiles. Although this art is still practiced in Nigeria this particular type of weaving is becoming rarer as time progresses. It is my hope that places like the Nike center for art and culture continue to revive these arts in Nigeria. As an African American who most likely has roots in southern Nigeria learning this art form was a healing experience, one that felt like the reclamation of an ancestral skill that had been taken away by force. I hope to share that experience with my students. Be sure to stay tuned as we continue our journey through the work of african textiles. 

Below: More examples of students weaving on their practice looms

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Week two of stitched into memory has officially wrapped. This week week we had the opportunity to explore techniques related to stitch resist dyeing ( Adire Alabere). Participants combined these techniques with the Adire Oniko techniques that they learned the previous week. Although they are just beginning to learn these techniques they have made some beautiful pieces! I am excited to see how their skills to continue develop.

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Hello Everyone!

Welcome to the project blog for Stitched Into memory, an arts education initiative teaching ancient West African textile arts to Boston youth. With the Generous Support of the New England Foundation for the arts and In collaboration with the Friends of Fort Point this project will celebrate and commemorate the historic and contemporary African Diaspora communities of Boston (Afro American, Afro Caribbean and Afro Latino). The project will culminate in a textile installation that will be placed in the lobby of Atlantic Wharf, and be composed of cotton canvas, muslin and handwoven cloth dyed in natural Indigo. The piece will also incorporate bead work, embroidery and other traditional arts. The project brings together youth, who will embark on a creative and educational journey through the history of West African textile traditions and industries, as well as their impact on the cultures of the Americas. 

For our first week we explored techniques related to the indigo Tie and Dye traditions of West Africa, which constitute some of the oldest textile traditions in the region. Fragments of indigo tye and dye textiles can be found in the tellem caves of Mali dating back to the 11th century. Among the Yoruba people of South western Nigeria and Benin Republic these techniques constitute the oldest and most basic traditions of Adire (pronounced ADEE-RAY Adi-to tie or bind and Ire to color/dye) resist dyed textiles. In Sierra Leone and Liberia as well as other Mande speaking areas these techniques are known as Gara. The technique involves using raffia or cord to tightly tie gathered and or folded sections of cloth. Once the cloth is dyed the ties are cut and the occluded areas leave a bright distinct pattern on the fabric. Indigo blue was the most common color used prior to the 20th century, however now bright synthetic dyes are also used.  

Though there were some areas where men practiced indigo dyeing In most of west Africa dyeing was primarily a woman’s profession. This was especially the case among the Yoruba. These dyers (Alaro) were responsible for dyeing the yarns used by both male and female weavers as well as the intricately patterned, tie and dye, stitch and dye and starch resist Adire textiles. These women often earned significant wealth through dyeing. Their deep and complex understanding the fermentation process necessary for extracting the the indigotin from the Elu (dried indigo balls) also earned these women respect as individuals who had access to spiritual power. For example female Orisha (deities) Such as Oshun, Yemoja and Iya Mapo were also very often associated with the dyeing arts.

During the transatlantic slave trade, enslaved men and women from West and central Africa were forced to work on plantations in Latin America and the caribbean as well as in semi-tropical regions of the Unites States such as South Carolina and Louisiana. Their skill in Indigo production and processing was crucial to the success of the indigo industry in the Americas. The exploitation of African labor was cruel. Many died on Indigo plantations under the harsh conditions of the processing factories. The thick and gnarly indigo bushes were planted in a fashion that made escape from plantations near impossible, which is one of the reasons recaptured runaway slaves were also forced to work there. Despite the abuse and overexploitation of African skill and understanding of the dye, Black peoples in indigo producing regions of the United states continued to believe in the spiritual power of indigo. People would paint their windows and doors blue to protect their homes and folk healers would stain their hands with indigo (and later Detergent bluing) before practicing divination rituals.  This practice is still used by some Banana and Wolof diviners in West Africa. Even after indigo production in the United States had ceased after the 18th century enslaved people would still dye their simple clothing with indigo. These traditions have a rich and complex history. Through learning these textile traditions we pay homage the mastery of the Indigo artisans of both ancient and contemporary Africa. We also pay our respects to those whose knowledge and skill were exploited on indigo plantations across the Americas. Be sure to check back as we continue our journey through world of African textile traditions.