Portfolio > "Weaving the Past into the Tapestries of Today: African American Folk-Art Traditions and Contemporary Textiles" at the de Young Museum

The African Diaspora | Art demonstration | Friday Night at the de Young Museum | 20 July 2012, 6 to 8:45 pm

de Young Museum images

Artist-in-Residence alumnus Ramekon O'Arwisters

"Weaving the Past into the Tapestries of Today: African American Folk-Art Traditions and Contemporary Textiles"

The concept of this artist demonstration is in weaving different strips of fabric—some new, some old, some even vintage—using the folk-art tradition of crocheting rag rugs. Visitors are welcome to bring pieces of fabric to the event and share their stories with others as we collectively combine storytelling with crocheting to create large works of art. Strips, bright colors, large designs, multiple patterns, asymmetry, and improvisation characterize African American textile traditions. These design principles have their roots in African textile techniques and cultural traditions. The actual links between African and African American textile traditions occurred between 1650 and 1850, when captured Africans from areas that are now Senegal, Mali, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Republic of Benin, Nigeria, Cameroon, Zaire, and Angola were enslaved in the United States.