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Yoruba artist; Wrapper (detail), mid- to late 20th century; cotton, rayon; 75 x 53 inches; Saint Louis Art Museum, Gift of Thomas Alexander and Laura Rogers 190:2011

Aso Oke: Prestige Cloth from Nigeria

The exhibition audio guide highlights personal connection and knowledge of textiles created by Yoruba weavers in southwestern Nigeria for celebratory and ceremonial occasions from the early 19th to late 20th century.

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    AUDIO GUIDE TRANSCRIPT

    The audio guide transcript is available to view on your own device.

Introduction

  • Speaker 
     
    Nichole Bridges 
    Morton D. May Curator of the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas, and Curator of African Art 
    Saint Louis Art Museum 

    Hello, my name is Nichole Bridges. I am the Museum’s Morton D. May Curator of the Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas, and curator of African art. I am delighted to welcome you to Aso Oke: Prestige Cloth from Nigeria.

    This exhibition features aso oke cloth dating from the 19th through 20th centuries. Aso oke are textiles created by Yoruba weavers in southwestern Nigeria that are fashioned into clothing for celebratory and ceremonial occasions.

    At the center of this gallery, three agbadas—men’s robes—introduce the fundamental types of aso oke. These are sanyan, tan raw silk and cotton; alaari, vibrant purple silk; and etu, deep indigo blue cotton. Sanyan, alaari, and etu form the foundation upon which weavers have implemented boundless innovations by incorporating new materials and design techniques as seen through the examples of aso oke presented here.

    This exhibition includes one painting by Nengi Omuku, a studio-based artist working today in Lagos, Nigeria. Omuku has been inspired by aso oke, sourcing the cloth in Nigerian marketplaces and creating paintings on aso oke that asserts presence for both her painted compositions and the cloth itself.

    This audio guide features Nengi Omuku, who speaks about her painting Mar Loj, on view here, and the voices of several members of the Yoruba community in St. Louis, who share their experiences resonating with examples of aso oke on view here.

    We encourage you to experience this guide in any order you like. You can locate each featured work by following the floorplan on this webpage or by identifying the audio icon on gallery labels.

    Whether you are listening from home or the exhibition gallery, I hope you enjoy this audio guide to Aso Oke: Prestige Cloth from Nigeria.

  • Gallery Text

    Aso Oke: Prestige Cloth from Nigeria 

    Aso oke (ah-shō-ō-kay) is prestige cloth created by Yoruba weavers in southwestern Nigeria. Individuals wearing this “high-status cloth,” as translated from Yoruba, fashion it into clothing for celebratory and ceremonial occasions such as weddings, naming ceremonies, and funerals. Families, who commission aso oke for the most important milestones of life, often pass the textiles on to the next generation as heirlooms.

    In addition to strip-woven construction, three elemental types of aso oke – Sanyan, Alaari, and Etu – form the foundation upon which weavers have achieved boundless design and material innovations. While the oldest examples are created of natural fibers such as palm, cotton, and silk, 20th-century examples incorporate synthetic fibers and pigments. These materials demonstrate technological innovations in fiber production and expanded global networks. This exhibition presents variations of aso oke dating from the 19th through 20th centuries. The textiles on view explore the cloths’ myriad visual appeal and the continual inventiveness of weavers that persist in aso oke worn and created today.

    The contemporary painter Nengi Omuku has found inspiration in aso oke, choosing the sanyan type as a canvas for her paintings. Juxtaposed with selections of historical aso oke in this gallery, the painting by Omuku helps to realize the artist’s vision. Omuku stated her desire, “to create a conversation between a contemporary artist and the weavers, who are also artists.”

    This exhibition is supported in part by the McDonnell Textile Endowment.

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