Bogolan: Shaping Culture Through Cloth in Contemporary Mali

By Victoria L. Rovine

Book Overview

Focusing on a single Malian textile identified variously as bogolanfini, bogolan, or mudcloth, Victoria L. Rovine traces the dramatic technical and stylistic innovations that have transformed the cloth from its village origins into a symbol of new internationalism. Rovine shows how the biography of this uniquely African textile reveals much about contemporary culture in urban Africa and about the global markets in which African art circulates. Bogolan has become a symbol of national and ethnic identities, an element of contemporary, urban fashion, and a lucrative product in tourist art markets. At the heart of this beautifully illustrated book are the artists, changing notions of tradition, nationalism, and the value of cloth making and marketing on a worldwide scale.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0253220297
• ISBN13: 9780253220295
• Release Date: August 2008
• Publisher: Indiana University Press
• Length: 200 Pages
• Weight: 1.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 7.1" x 10.0"
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Interesting and fun - a book on African mudcloth

Victoria Rovine tells a great story and illustrates it with wonderful images of the indigenous textile from Mali, bogolanfini or bogolan, known as mudcloth in the US. Her book is strong on theory but also full of personal details about the people and the places where bogolan is made. Good for anthropology, fine art, material culture courses but also an excellent read for anyone interested in African culture and creativity. Highly recommended!