African Occasional Textiles: Vernacular Landscapes of Development

Abstract

Occasional textiles, or tissus evenementiels, are iconic elements of large-scale social events in many parts of Africa (Rabine 2002). Since the mid-twentieth century, widespread production and circulation of printed cotton cloth designed and worn for special occasions such as political rallies, the arrival of visiting dignitaries, the celebration of holidays and anniversaries, and the commemoration of individuals and institutions have made occasional textiles a transnational social phenomenon and ubiquitous form of material culture. Similar types of political textiles have historically been used in Europe and the United States as tea towels, kerchiefs, upholstery fabric, banners, and wall hangings (for examples see Atkins 2005; Collins 1979; Fischer 1988; Reath 1925; Thieme 1984). However, African consumers in many different regions have generally preferred the fabrics as wrappers or tailored clothing, often to be worn as matching outfits by large numbers of people during particular events. A material discourse and popular form of consumer culture throughout many parts of the continent, African occasional textiles emerge from and contribute to processes of nationalization, globalization, capitalism, and development. Alternatively known as commemorative cloths or “portraitcloths,” this foundational element of contemporary African sartorial art, I argue, provides an ongoing visual commentary regarding the direction of society but also shapes emergent discourses and practices as a form of political technology intended to circulate and reinforce ideas of progress. The iconography of occasional textiles thus provides a rich source of information on individual and community perceptions, memories, myths, and aspirations. Instead of reading the textiles as forms of party propaganda, and moving beyond a national frame of reference, I highlight iconography constituting landscapes, people, and technologies symbolizing achievements and aspirations associated with modernity, progress, and development. The diversity of symbols represent more than political propaganda, although much scholarship has emphasized this rather notorious dimension of the communicative value of the materials (e.g., Akinwunmi 1997; Ayina 1987; Beauchamp 1957; Bickford 1994; Clarke 2002; Clark 2005; Faber 2010; Nielson 1979; Picton 2001; Spencer 1982). Understood as historical text, the iconography displayed on African occasional textiles reveals attitudes surrounding development, modernity, the environment, and aspirations for the future. Like written texts, the symbolic content of occasional textiles presupposes situated cultural knowledge critical to interpreting the ideas communicated. Textile iconography serves not only to commemorate the past but contributes to shaping the future; as noted by curator Anne Spencer, occasional textiles have “been used effectively to popularize new ideas ... to promote party policies ranging from education to rural development” (1982:6–7). However, the role of this iconography in processes of development, while recognized, has received comparatively little intellectual scrutiny (e.g., Ayina 1987; Spencer 1982; Textile Museum of Canada 2009). John Picton explains that the factory origin of cotton prints accounts for “relatively late entry into the subject matter of Africanist art-historical research” (1995:24–25). Previous studies of the iconographic repertoire of occasional textiles tend to highlight a seemingly infinite array of themes, events, and people that appears to defy generalization (e.g., Faber 2010:9; Picton 2001:112; Rabine 2002:151–52). More troubling is the notion that these African textiles are too “wacky” for European taste (Picton 2001:159). In this article I assert that while the artwork and symbols displayed on occasional textiles may be facilely categorized