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bogolan cloth
 
Item: Bogolan cloth San
Size: 138 x 190 cm
Weight: 1100 g
Material: Handspun and handwoven cotton, sewn from strips
Price: € 55.00 (£ 44.00)
Additional information: A unique piece of cloth. Machine wash (30˚)
Item number: B 07 001
Delivery time: 1 - 2 weeks
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Item: Bogolan cloth Segou
Size: 145 x 190 cm
Weight: 840 g
Material: Handspun and handwoven cotton, sewn from strips
Price: € 65.00 (£ 52.00)
Additional information: A unique piece of cloth. Machine wash (30˚). Artist: Nakany Coulibaly,
Segou
Item number: B 07 003
Delivery time: 1 - 2 weeks
Sold
 
Item: Bogolan cloth Zinzana
Size: 112 x 180 cm
Weight: 650 g
Material: Handspun and handwoven cotton
Price: € 60.00 (£ 48.00)
Additional information: A unique piece of cloth. Machine wash (30˚). Artist: Doussou, Segou
Item number: B 07 004
Delivery time: 1 - 2 weeks
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Our bogolan cloths come from Mali.
In West African textile art, Malian mud dyeing holds a special place. The word bogolan means ”with the aid of clay” in the Bamana language. These cloths have have played a special ritual role and like amulets, they have protected both hunters and young women in dangerous situations.
The most intricate bogolan cloths come from the Beledougou area north of the capital Bamako. Simpler cloths are made also elsewhere in Mali and the neighbouring countries. The traditional Beledougou cloths are made using a negative dyeing technique: the background is covered with
black clay and the pattern is formed by the areas left uncovered (e.g. the Markala cloth on the left). In simpler versions, the dyeing is done the other way around.
It will take one woman 60 hours to dye one bogolan cloth. First, the stripwoven cloth is softened in a vegetable dye and left to dry in the sun, where it turnes yellow. The clay producing the pattern contains tannine and iron, and it is spread out over the cloth by pressing hard
with a stick. Once the clay has dried, the cloth is washed. The cloth now has a black (or dark brown) and yellow pattern. The whole procedure is repeated once more, and if preferred, the yellow areas are bleached to make the cloth black and white. Finally, the cloth is
washed several times.
Sources:
Rovine, Victoria L.: Bogolan – Shaping Culture Through Cloth in Contemporary Mali. Smithsonian Institution Press, 2001.
Arkilla Kerka – tekstiilejä Länsi-Afrikasta. Ed. Eila Kivekäs.
Pyynikinlinna (Finland), 1991.
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