The
art of the Kuba Tribe of Africa's Congo Basin
is remarkable for its abstract patterning and
in particular of fabrics. Traditional appliquéd
cloth, woven from raffia palm leaves, was primarily
made into dance skirts and until it was replaced
by cowry shells, the basic Kuba weaving unit,
an undecorated square of plain cloth, the mbal,
was used as currency. The Kuba’s primary
use of the cloth is at funerals of wealthy elders.
The traditional techniques used to create the
cloth have survived because of these funerals,
enabling us to continue to enjoy the extraordinary
creative Kuba textiles.
In Victoria Falls, we take this wonderful cloth
and using leather, make unique and beautiful handbags.
Each bag is highly individual as no two pieces
of cloth can be the same due to their being hand
crafted. |
