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Tunic is tailored, with a scoop neck and short sleeves, fitted at waist then flares to the hips. It is constructed from kente cloth, which is strip-woven with gold, blue, red and green yarns. Strips are sewn together at selvedges.
Kente kaba
Courtesy of the Harn Museum of Art, Photography by Randy Batista

Kente kaba

Artist Juliana Kweifio-Okai (Ghanaian, 1933 - 1993)
DateLate 1960s
Place of originAccra, Ghana
MediumRayon
DimensionsVariable: 22 3/4 × 23 1/2 × 1 in. (57.8 × 59.7 × 2.5 cm)
ClassificationsClothing and accessories
Credit LineGift of Edith François
Object number2015.1
Collections
Visual DescriptionTunic is tailored, with a scoop neck and short sleeves, fitted at waist then flares to the hips. It is constructed from kente cloth, which is strip-woven with gold, blue, red and green yarns. Strips are sewn together at selvedges.
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Samuel Cophie, b. 1939
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Strip woven cloth hand sewn at selvedges; red, yellow, tan, green and black; warp and weft patterns, some floating weft designs and openwork. Elaborate warp and weft patterns. Weft patterns include hands, fish and geometric abstract motifs that may be identifiable by experts.
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Stripwoven cloth, sewn at selvedges, red, green and gold, 11 weft designs, one warp design
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Asante Artist
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19 panels, all hand sewn. Medium wieght all cotton cloth with orange/gold rayon overshot yarn to fabricate the kola nut leaf motifs. Ten yarn colors were used, in addition to the overshot, with colored warps and wefts creating an additional secondary palette of colors.
Man's Cloth (adanudo)
Ewe Artist
1940s
Tunic with wide sleeves constructed from narrow handwoven strips, made of hand-spun cotton; alternating alizarin, dark blue and white stripes, indigo and white ikat stripes; tan thread used for 11 embroidered "knot" motifs on center of front; also embroidered on back, top; pale blue commercial cotton cloth lining.
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Nupe Artist
20th century
Tunic is black cotton damask (bazin) embroidered with multi-colored thread (red, blue, gold) in central diagonal parallel bands across front, embellished with alternating bands of beadworK (red, pink, green, white, yellow); Large bell sleeves, scoop neck. Skirt is same black dyed bazin as tunic, with a single stripe of embroidery in red, blue and gold thread. Red embroidered trim on neck and sleeves. Beaded headband has diamond pattern similar to those on tunic.
Woman's Tunic and Wrap Skirt
2010
A tightly woven cloth; strips sewn together by hand; colors include green, gold, burgundy and black.
Man's cloth (kente)
Asante Artist
1950-1960s

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