Holds Of Time
My project "Holds of Time" aims to explore and bring to the fore the lives and art of the women of the Kofar Mata dye pit who work behind the scenes tying fabrics which are later dyed in the pits by the men who are majorly the focus when the Kofar Mata dye pit is visited. In adding historical data to graphic representation of the women artists I intend to bring to the fore a vital aspect of the work of these women which has largely been unresearched and documented in Nigeria despite its long history.
“Kofar Mata” is a hausa phrase that means "The women's door/gate". Ironically, when you visit the Kofar Mata Dye Pit which was founded in 1498, you only get to meet the men who are in charge of dyeing the fabrics which have been carefully tied by women behind the scenes using various techniques to form beautiful patterns that are later appreciated after being dyed by the men of this community.
This age long tying and dyeing process is similar in other countries like Mali, Senegal, Guinea, Gambia across West Africa and with the collection in the Stanley Museum, it will be interesting to show the process that has birthed the pieces standing in the museum.
I intend for the project to capture the strength and resilience of these women and how they have used their skills to make a living over the years out of their collective effort to sustain a cultural practice that promotes local fashion and identity. Even though, many of their children are abandoning this tradition as the quest to acquire western education has risen, I hope that my project endorses the need for them to find ways to balance the practice and sustenance of this heritage while studying and learning how to merge both for growth and development of their community.
My creative references stem from my curiosity about textiles and natural dyes. I am inspired by one of my projects called "Kwalliya" which is an exploration of cultural marks going into extinction and the need to preserve them for posterity. I am experimenting to see how I can have these marks on fabric using natural dyes as a medium.
I am able to connect my Kwalliya project with the Holds of Time project into a bigger statement of the need to preserve our history and heritage for posterity.
