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Woman's Kente Wrappers

A work made of .1: pieced of 15 strips of cotton, warp striped plain weave with supplementary patterning and brocading wefts and self-patterned by bands of ground weft-floats .2: pieced of 12 strips of cotton, warp striped plain weave with supplementary patterning and brocading wefts and self-patterned by bands of ground weft-floats.

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  • A work made of .1: pieced of 15 strips of cotton, warp striped plain weave with supplementary patterning and brocading wefts and self-patterned by bands of ground weft-floats .2: pieced of 12 strips of cotton, warp striped plain weave with supplementary patterning and brocading wefts and self-patterned by bands of ground weft-floats.

Date:

Mid–20th century

Artist:

Ewe
Ghana

About this artwork

Although kente is widely associated with Asante people, their Ewe neighbors also produce garments using a similar technique. The blue-and-white color scheme of these wrappers recalls early kente cloth made by both the Asante and the Ewe in the 18th century. Woven with undyed and indigo-dyed cotton, the narrow strips of light and dark rectangles are arranged to create the characteristic kente checkerboard pattern. The two cloths seen here would have been worn as a set, with the larger rectangular panel worn around the woman’s torso and the square cloth worn as shawl or a head wrap, depending on the occasion.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Textiles

Culture

Ewe

Title

Woman's Kente Wrappers

Place

Ghana (Object made in:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

Made 1925–1975

Medium

.1: Pieced of 15 strips of cotton, warp striped plain weave with supplementary patterning and brocading wefts and self-patterned by bands of ground weft-floats .2: Pieced of 12 strips of cotton, warp striped plain weave with supplementary patterning and brocading wefts and self-patterned by bands of ground weft-floats

Dimensions

.1: 172 × 137.4 cm (67 3/4 × 54 1/8 in.) .2: 166 × 106.8 cm (65 3/8 × 42 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Gil and Roda Graham

Reference Number

2002.537.1-2

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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