Yinka Shonibare
Yinka Shonibare
"DRESSING DOWN"
Wax Print Cotton Textile
From an early stage in his work, Shonibare has employed the ambiguous materials and motifs of West African textiles. These fabrics seem to symbolise the rich complexity of post-colonial cultures in that, while the patterns and colours are thought to be authentically African, they actually originate from Indonesian Batik work,a technique which was industrialised by Dutch traders. The British adopted these processes, setting up factories in the North of England where Asian workers printed English designs for the West African market. So as Kobena Mercer notes the fabric has a mixed identity In Africa it has the allure of imported goods, in Europe it evokes exotica. More recently these cloths have been styled and worn by Black British and African American people as a visual signifier for a connection with and pride in their African roots.
Shonibare`s work examines the contradictions of both contemporary and historical portrayals of Africans living in Britain, a country built on hierarchies of class and race. He has made a series of sculptural pieces, using his trademark African textiles, which take the form of Victorian crinolines and bodices, transforming these usually staid and confining structures into bright, flamboyant sculptures. Many of his pieces have a highly crafted and decorative appearance but at the same time through their translation of materials or juxtaposition of references, provide a critical commentary on the way the orthodox history of art has judged, categorised or completely overlooked other histories, artists and works.
