The world of African decoration offers authenticity, cultural richness, and warmth. By integrating ethnic decor into your interior, you are sure to bring authenticity and originality to it. African decoration draws its roots from ancient history and various cultures and traditions.
One of the most distinctive features of African decoration is the use of rich colors and vibrant patterns. Warm tones like red, brown, and yellow evoke the sunny landscapes of Africa. Tribal and geometric patterns add a touch of authenticity and mystery. These warm colors and tribal patterns can be found in a variety of fabrics.
To achieve ethnic decoration, the use of natural materials is necessary. Opt for elements of raw or ebony wood. Rattan, bamboo, jute, and raffia are widely used plant fibers in ethnic decoration. Leather is also an important characteristic of African decoration, which adds a sense of warmth and rusticity to your interiors while recalling the deep connection between humans and nature.
To complete your African decoration, add decorative objects that make a difference, such as beautiful linens. Choose cushion covers, throws, curtains with ethnic patterns and colors. Exotic tropical plants add a touch of greenery. Add decorative objects in terracotta pots, vases, or statuettes for a chic and elegant touch on your shelves.
Many postcards feature clothes with elaborate patterns that might seem to be traditional to East Africa - but were actually produced in European and North American factories. The images of women in these outfits "tell us about the history of photography in a seemingly faraway place, like the coast of Africa," she says. "But they also tell us a story about women's fashion" - and how women and others on the Swahili coast enjoyed and remixed other traditions. Those living along the Swahili coast were not merely passive consumers of Western culture. They made it their own, and in turn influenced Western culture, too.
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Our shower curtains are made from 100% polyester fabric and include 12 holes at the top of the curtain for simple hanging from your own shower curtain rings. The total dimensions of each shower curtain are 71" wide x 74" tall.
Historical Photography on the Swahili Coast
Not long after photography was introduced to East Africa in the 1860s, studios sprouted up in cities like Mombasa, in what is now Kenya, and Zanzibar's Old Town, she explains. Soon people from all walks of life began sitting for portraits taken by local photographers in small studios.
These portraits depict people in a variety of fascinating poses: "Looking at the camera [in] sometimes playful, sometimes seductive, sometimes serious ways," says Meier. Most subjects dressed in their best outfits, but others took the opportunity to slip into other lives and identities - masquerading as a Victorian lady, a movie star, a woman in a Middle Eastern harem.
"It became this space where you could present yourself as a powerful, autonomous, cosmopolitan, sophisticated, fabulous human being," Meier says. The photos also show the diversity of people on the Swahili coast, Meier says. The region was home to Arabs, South Asians, Europeans and Americans.
Between about 1890 and 1920, when the photos for the postcards in this exhibition were taken, sitting for portraits had become a popular, inexpensive pastime. It was a fun way to spend time with friends and family - kind of like those photo booths at the mall or the old-timey dress-up studios in beach towns.
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The Postcards and Their History
The postcards themselves have a "problematic" history, Meier says. They were produced specifically for European and North American audiences - without the knowledge of the subjects. In addition to using family photos, the studios would stage shots with paid models. The photographer would then order thousands of postcards to be made in Europe from a negative; the postcards would be sold throughout the West and also be sent back to coastal towns in Africa, where they were marketed to Western tourists.
"So it would go back and forth several times," Meier says. This cultural exchange is found, too, in the poses the people in the portraits strike.
Trade across the Indian and Atlantic Oceans brought everything from clothes to music to magazines to, eventually, movies from the West to Africa, and vice versa, says Meier. "There was a connectedness and a familiarity with the rest of the world," she says. "And that was also lighthearted and playful."
Colorized postcards, made by hand-painting black-and-white images, were also popular. Some of the best-selling postcards featured beautiful women. "People loved this idea that they could somehow have access to these exotic people. Especially exotic women," she says. "Postcards were also meant to fulfill European fantasies about Swahili women," Meier says.
Yet Meier points out that many of the women who commissioned portraits of themselves in more risqué or scandalous poses saw the photos as a chance to rebel, just a little, against tradition and the expectations their families had for them. "For the sitter, it was a beautiful, playful or even humorous portrait," she says. "And today, when people from Mombasa or Zanzibar look at these images, they focus on the beauty and elegance and see the photographs as historical documents."
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Exhibition at the Smithsonian
Now, these historic postcards are being viewed once more as part of a new exhibition at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African Art in Washington, D.C. World on the Horizon: Swahili Arts Across the Indian Ocean showcases 160 objects from museums and private collections on four continents, displaying art and history from the region known as the Swahili coast in East Africa. The exhibition runs until September 3.
Prita Meier, the co-curator, chose these postcards because "they show the compelling and amazing ways" that people living on the Swahili coast quickly embraced photography, especially portraits, and made the art their own. Meier is the author of a forthcoming book about photography on the Swahili coast from the 1870s to the 1970s and is an assistant professor of art history at New York University.
| Aspect | Description |
|---|---|
| Photography Introduction | Introduced to East Africa in the 1860s |
| Popularity | Became popular between 1890 and 1920 |
| Postcard Production | Produced for European and North American audiences without subjects' knowledge |
| Cultural Exchange | Trade across Indian and Atlantic Oceans influenced poses and styles |
| Exhibition | Showcased at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African Art |
