African Dress: A Select and Annotated Bibliography of Subsaharan Countries by JoanneBubolz Eicher; African Textiles: An Outline of Hand Crafted Subsaharan Fabrics by CherylPlumerReview by: Dorothy UdallAfrica Today, Vol. 20, No. 3 (1973), p. 81Published by: Indiana University PressStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/4185331 .

Accessed: 16/06/2014 15:01

Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at .http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp

.JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range ofcontent in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new formsof scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.

.

Indiana University Press is collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Africa Today.

http://www.jstor.org

This content downloaded from 195.78.108.60 on Mon, 16 Jun 2014 15:01:31 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions

Joanne Bubolz Eicher, AFRICAN DRESS: a Select and Annotated Bibliography of Subsaharan Countries (East Lansing: African Studies Center, Michigan State University, 1969) 134 pp. $4.00.

Cheryl Plumer, AFRICAN TEXTILES: an Outline of Hand Crafted Subsaharan Fabrics (East Lansing: African Studies Center, Michigan State University, 1971) 146 pp. $4.00.

These two paperback publications are a welcome addition to the growing list of source materials on African cultures. Earlier publications on African Art dealt mostly with wood and metal sculptures from West Africa and the Congo Basin which had found their way into European museums and strongly in- fluenced such painters as Picasso and Braque. Until quite recently there has been little systematic effort made to collect and preserve the material culture of everyday tribal life throughout the continent. Since many items have been made of wood and other perishable materials, many of the styles, colors, tex- tures, and patterns that evolved in societies working with simple tools and indigenous materials have been lost forever. Only a limited number of items can be found in some museums in Africa and other parts of the world.

Fortunately, now, efforts are being made, at leas't in some parts of Africa, to collect and record the artifacts of everyday life before the indigenous culture becomes so influenced by the all-pervasive "western" culture that their previous characteristics are lost.

African Dress by Joanne Bubulz Eicher represents an immense amount of time and effort spent in checking all kinds of literature about Africa for any descriptions of the apparel of African peoples south of the Sahara. It is a valuable reference for anyone wanting to know as much as it is possible to discover about how African peoples have dressed and adorned themselves, at least during the last century.

African Textiles by Cheryl Plumer presents, in outline form, a summary of the textiles made and used in various parts of Africa, organized by geographical regions. The outline includes for each region, and where in- formation is available, for countries and ethnic groups within the region, the history of weaving and descriptions of the preparation of yarns, looms, weavers, and types of textiles produced (i.e., structural design, dyeing, and surface decoration) as well as trade with other Africans and with non- Africans, which of course has influenced the production of handcrafted articles. African weaving and textile decoration is a much more lively and varied art than one might be aware of from the so-called "African prints" sold in the United States. Both authors point out that the kinds of textiles produced and the dress and ornaments worn by the people of any culture provide valuable in- sights into other aspects of their behavior. One can only regret that neither book contains any illustrations, though it is easy to understand that this would not have been feasil?le, given their scope. It is to be hoped that they will provide a beginning and that in time a visual as well as a verbal record of African textiles and dress may be produced.

Dorothy Udall Colorado State University

Fort Collins, Colo.

81

This content downloaded from 195.78.108.60 on Mon, 16 Jun 2014 15:01:31 PMAll use subject to JSTOR Terms and Conditions