Made of Africa ( MofA)
 

The products illustrated here are the result of an approximately four week long workshop involving a dozen or so people with different craft, weaving and sewing skills from Gigi Ethiopia.

Aim: to transform familiar handcraft objects imaginatively into new decorated art objects for an export market using easily available, relatively inexpensive, simple materials. In the process we intended to provide the semi-skilled handcraft workers with new skills and imaginative techniques. In future workshops it will be possible to give skills for resource generating activities,

Structure: The workshops were run under the supervision of Gigi Fresenbet, fashion designer from Ethiopia and Bruce Clarke, Anglo-French visual artist from Paris.

Workshop: The selection of several dozen different basic objects acquired in local markets and shops was presented to the participants.
 

Summary designs prepared by the supervisors for the transformation of the objects were also presented to the participants and an array of different working materials was exhibited. These materials included paint, off cuts from fabric designed by Gigi Ethiopia, beads, natural fibers of different sorts including dried false banana leaves, metal, nails, glass etc. The common denominator for this material was that it should be easily available - sometimes found - and relatively inexpensive.

In the first few hours of the workshops the participants seemed slightly inhibited, if not intimidated by the task.
 

Previously they had had little training outside their own specialties. For example, trained to sew and cut they had no familiarity with using paint. Furthermore since they knew the objects in their traditional utilitarian context it was a big step for them to imagine the new decorative or artistic function which we wished to give.
 

However, after the initial wariness the participants warmed up and as well as following instructions from the supervisors began to take initiatives themselves. It was stressed to them that most "mistakes" could be undone, thus opening the way to forms of experimentation and un-inhibiting the participants. Different artistic techniques were introduced and it was emphasised that there were no "rules": materials could be mixed and combined according to the imagination of the artist. Emphasis was however placed on a clean and professional finish on all objects.

Despite working initially from the designs produced by the supervisors which were important to set examples of our intentions, improvisation soon became a key factor and inspiration came simply on seeing the large array of material available.

Conclusion: Since the transformed objects were considered "prototypes" a certain margin of trial and error is inevitable. However we consider that at least 80 % of the objects produced in the experimental workshop as viable export products. In a relatively short period of time the participants acquired new skills and used their imagination creatively. The potential for extending the experience over a longer period is exciting and the pedagogic and economic scope is extremely wide.

 

The combined skills of trained visual artists, crafts people and fashion designers proved educationally important to all. There was an exchange and enrichment of competences, opening out to experimentation and original new ideas.
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