Paradigmatic Appraisal of Techniques and Technology of Adire in the Last Five Decades

Abstract

Adire, the patterned dyed cloth of the Yoruba of Southwestern Nigeria remains extant and has become a permanent feature of the visual and cultural landscape of the people’s environment. Although this art tradition has undergone a lot of challenges brought about by developments within the Yoruba country, and influences from external forces, which ordinarily should have culminated in it becoming obsolete, the art has remained dynamic and survived against all odds. This study, an art historical study based on field research, analyzes the technical and technological changes that have bombarded Adire art tradition over five decades and how the dogged resilience of the art and the artists have yielded a dynamic evolution of  myriads of patterns that have aided the art’s survival and relevance.

Keywords: Adire, appraisal, five decades, paradigmatic, techniques, technology