Kente Cloth Garment

Noah, Finn, Anelia, Parvan, Adam, Ali, Joey, Tommaso, Milan, Magdalenna, Emily, Gabriella, Layah, Deequa, Ryosei, Inaya, Ranaa, Alfred, Ella, Simran, Shriya, Phoebe, Ali, Kiaan, Corey, Saki, Rudy, Radin, Age 5

  • Installation
  • Acrylic paint on hessian
  • 800(w) 1600(h) 50(d) mm

The pupils found out about Kente cloth and West African textile design as part of Black History Month. They were taught about shape, symmetry, and what the colours used in the patterns symbolise. The pupils also learnt the West African folklore tale, 'Anansi the Spider Weaver'. They went on to create their own collaborative piece of 'Kente' inspired fabric design by painting and printing onto a large piece of hessian cloth. First they painted blocks in red, yellow and green. Each pupil then printed their own repeated pattern onto a block of colour using found objects in the classroom like corks, wooden shapes and sponges. When the cloth was dry the children looked at how fabric can be wrapped around the body to create a garment. This resulted in their fabric design being used to create a piece of clothing.