Colour Symbolism of Aboakyir

Abstract

In Ghana, traditional festivals are important cultural elements that are identified with many ethnic groups across the country. Aboakyir is one of such traditional festivals celebrated annually by an ethnic group in the Central Region called Simpa or Effutu. The Effutu people celebrate the festival at their traditional capital called Winneba every first week of May. The purpose of the study was to conduct a qualitative research into the colours used to celebrate the Simpa Aboakyir festival during the 2016 edition. To aid the researchers gather reliable data for the study, a non-probability sampling technique called purposive sampling was used to select 16 respondents. The researchers used observation, unstructured interview and still-photography to gather primary data throughout the last week of the festival. The responses from the interviews were recorded electronically; field notes and still-pictures were taken and the recorded information was transcribed, the field notes were expanded and relevant photographs were sifted and edited. The data was categorised into relevant themes and the selected photographs were analysed through aesthetic appreciation. The transcribed data were analysed through inductive reasoning and descriptive qualitative approach to respond to the objectives and research questions of the study.  The findings that emanated from the analyses were discussed qualitatively according to the philosophy of interpretivism research paradigm to reflect the literature and the research questions of the study. Based on the findings that emerged from the analysis, the researchers recommended that visual art students at all levels and visual art practitioners must experiment the colours used by Effutus in the celebration of their traditional festival to develop other unconventional harmonious colour schemes that can be applied in creative arts.

Keywords: Aboakyir festival, colour schemes and aesthetic appreciation