Appliqued Kuba Skirt

Raffia fiber use in the making of both woven and unwoven cloth was the sole method of fabric making for the tribes of Congo(or today’s Zaire).Men were the weavers or pounders and women the adorners such as the embroiderers and sewers. The applique technique employed here was developed to cover imperfections in the fragile fiber cloth.The design elements of geometrical forms all have mythological meanings. The edges of the patches are all hemmed on top, giving the fabric an added textural element.Hard to believe but this is a woman’s wrap skirt , used on ceremonial occasions, nowadays mostly in funerals .Kuba kingdom, Kasai region, Zaire.