DALLAS, TX.- The Dallas Museum of Art presents Wearable Raffia, a new exhibition that celebrates African textile design, drawing from the DMA’s extensive collection of African art, one of the leading of its kind in the United States. Opening on August 31, 2019, the exhibition brings together raffia garments from West and Central Africa and the island of Madagascar to reveal the ingenuity of designers across the continent. Organized by Dr. Roslyn A. Walker, the DMA’s Senior Curator of the Arts of Africa, the Americas, and the Pacific and The Margaret McDermott Curator of African Art, the exhibition is on view until next summer and can be seen for free in the Museum’s third floor Textile Gallery.

“The DMA has one of the most significant collections of African Art in the nation, and it is an incredible resource from which to develop exhibitions and programs that offer new perspectives and insights to our audiences,” said Dr. Agustín Arteaga, the DMA’s Eugene McDermott Director. “Often we think of objects inside a vitrine as precious, which they are, but these pieces were once used by people like us. The objects in this exhibition tell their story, and when we share it, they come alive.”

In Africa, before the introduction of imported cotton fabric, tree bark and leaves were the traditional sources of fibers used to make cloth. Raffia, the material harvested from raffia palm leaves, was once one of the most common textile fibers on the continent. Exploring the ingenious use of this vital material, Wearable Raffia highlights 15 works of art from several groups across four African countries, including the Bamileke (Cameroon), Dida (Côte d’Ivoire), Kuba, Suku, and Teke (Democratic Republic of the Congo), and the Merina (Madagascar).

“Raffia clothing, shoes, and accessories are currently in vogue in the USA and Europe. Since the early 2000s, such Western fashion houses as The House of Dior, Paris, have commissioned raffia fabrics from weavers in Madagascar. In Africa, weavers have been transforming raw raffia into clothing and headwear for centuries,” said Dr. Walker. “This visually appealing exhibition, which includes a ‘please touch’ section, reveals the meticulous craftsmanship, imaginative designs, and ways to wear raffia cloth in Africa.”

Encompassing skirts, a shawl, and headwear, the raffia textiles in this exhibition demonstrate two primary weaving techniques. The Teke, Kuba, and Merina created textiles using looms, while the Dida interlaced raffia threads by hand.