Adire: Cloth, gender and social change in Southwestern Nigeria, 1841--1991

This study traces the development of hand-dyed textiles (adire) and related social and gender issues in Southwestern Nigeria from 1841 to 1991. To do this, it examines material form and technique as well as social and cultural phenomena, linking these together and locating them in context in order to bring into focus some of the far-reaching changes which have affected art and society in this region. The arts are thus treated both as an object of study and as an index of social change,; The text is presented in five chapters, each of which proceeds in chronological order and builds on the preceding chapters. Dyes are presented in Chapter one, as an essential basis to a history of dyed cloth. Chapter two discusses different types of fabrics, placing adire in a larger textile context. Chapter three describes economic factors in the history of textile production. Chapter four focuses on textile producers and the social context of textile production. Chapter five examines the relationships between fabrics, fashion, and society. Photographic materials and a discussion of methods and sources are included in the appendices.; A broad range of methods and sources are used in this study. Oral sources, written sources, and archival sources are more important for some aspects than for others. Linguistic evidence facilitates reconstruction of textile technology and provides information about obsolete textile and garment types. Oral identifications of obsolete dyestuffs and their verification by testing the substances as dyes yields evidence of technologies and colors. Photographs and collections of textiles and garments document changes in fabrics and fashions. Most importantly, two years working with dyers in Nigeria, learning the methods and techniques, provides the critical basis of experience with which to evaluate other sources, and is itself the major source for discussion of textile professionals and their art.