Exhibition: Wandering Spirit: African Wax Prints

The Northeast Louisiana Delta African American Heritage Museum opens Wandering Sprit: African Wax Prints. This exhibition is a tribute to the century-old handmade designs and patterns on textiles that originated in Indonesia and were copied and industrializes by Europeans and exported to Africa. Wandering Sprit: African Wax Prints traces the developmental pathway of the African wax print and tells how these fabrics reflects the stories, dreams, and personalities of the people who wear them. The exhibition opens January 15, 2020 – March 1, 2020 at The Northeast Louisiana Delta African American Heritage Museum 1051 Chennault Park Dr. Monroe, LA Monday- Saturday 10 am – 3pm $5 Adult $3 children 12 and under. The process for handmade batiks was invented in eight-century China, then expanded to India on the coast of Coromandel. The technique was then imported to Java by traders in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. The success of the wax prints on the African scene is driven by many factors, such as the culture, taste, and desires of the of the African consumer. Clothing in Africa serves an important means of communication, sending secret messages and retelling local proverbs. Clothing also depicts a person’s social status and position, political convictions, ambitions, marital status, ethnicity, age, sex and group affiliations. The history of the African wax print is a history paved along colonial trade routes and globalization in the post-colonial era. Though not originally African, these textiles became ingrained in African culture and society, and loved and identified as their own. More info Ross Slacks 318-345-8889 [email protected]