Tamale

Flying to Northern Ghana

We had to wake up early to catch a 6:30am flight to Tamale from the Accra airport. Even in the early morning hours the city was wide awake. It was a short one hour flight and I saw the dramatic shift in the landscape as I peered out the window of the plane. Lush vegetation spread out in every direction, covering the area in a sea of green. It was quite a contrast from the Accra urban area.

Tamale is home to the Dagbon people, who weave chinchini cloth that is used to create Ghanian smocks or fugu. These garments were worn by warriors in the 19th century, but today they are worn for festivals and some basic designs are even worn daily. Chinchini is wider than kete cloth, and it features vertical designs rather than the more intricate patterns that are found in kete. It is also almost exclusively woven by women in the area.

We were able to sift through a large pile of fabric pieces to see the many variations of patterns that different weavers create. Gwen and I spent almost an hour rummaging through and examining the scraps, seeing the similarities and differences between them, and picking our favorites.

We went to several locations where our guide knew the weavers, but as we drove through the area we began to spot weavers all over the place. We would frequently see them working together in small groups as a communal activity, but occasionally we would see a solitary loom on a porch. I was able to see just how important this traditional art is to the community and how many women rely on the income generated from their exquisite work.

Watching the women weave, I was mesmerized by the rhythmic clink of their looms as they beat the weft into place. The metal looms had a distinct sound that harmonized as the weavers worked.

Inventive Looms

The weavers use double heddle looms created from drying racks that are welded together.

Fabric Scraps

Chinchini fabric can be up to 15" wide, compared to the more narrow kete cloth.

Long Warp Threads

As the women weave, they roll the fabric up, which pulls the warp, secured many feet away, closer to the loom.

Page updated

Google Sites

Report abuse