Documenting changing fashion in Africa post-1960
This kanga was made in Mombasa, Kenya from machine-printed cotton in 2017. The design features a green, white, and black circle motif. Kangas are bought in pairs and worn as an outfit with one wrapped as a skirt and one as a top, shawl or head covering. They usually feature a slogan which is used Read More …
This pair of unseparated kangas was made in Mombasa, Kenya from machine-printed cotton in 2017. Traditional kanga designs are inspired by guineafowl, a speckled bird found across sub-Saharan Africa, – ‘kanga’ is the Kiswahili word for guineafoul. Kangas are bought in pairs and worn as an outfit with one wrapped as a skirt and one Read More …
This kanga was made in Kenya from machine printed cotton in the early 1990s. The design features palm trees. Kangas are bought in pairs and worn as an outfit with one wrapped as a skirt and one as a top, shawl or headcovering. They usually feature a slogan which is used to make a statement, Read More …
This kanga was made in Kenya from machine printed cotton in the late 1980s. The design features a map of Africa with Kenya highlighted in green. Traditional kanga designs are inspired by guineafowl, a speckled bird found across sub-Saharan Africa, – ‘kanga’ is the Kiswahili word for guineafoul. Kangas are bought in pairs and worn Read More …
This book by an American author and illustrator who spent time living in East Africa contains coloured illustrations showing different ways to wear kangas, the popular East African textile which is sold as a pair of cloths and often worn as a wrap skirt and a shawl or head covering. Collected as part of the Read More …
This is a Kanga from Kenya, East Africa, made from machine-printed cotton in the 1980s. The design features blue and yellow gourds and a yellow leaf motif. The centre panel depicts a kora – a harp-like stringed instrument from Western Africa. Kangas are bought in pairs and worn as an outfit with one wrapped as Read More …
This is a Kanga from Kenya, East Africa, made from machine-printed cotton in the 1980s. The design features red scallops, dove motifs, and the ‘Venus’ (female) symbol. Kangas are bought in pairs and worn as an outfit with one wrapped as a skirt and one as a top, shawl or headcovering. They usually feature a Read More …
This is a Kanga from Kenya, East Africa, made from machine-printed cotton in the 1980s. The design features red scallops, dove motifs, and the ‘Venus’ (female) symbol. Kangas are bought in pairs and worn as an outfit with one wrapped as a skirt and one as a top, shawl or headcovering. They usually feature a Read More …
This is one of a pair of Kangas from Kenya, East Africa, made from machine-printed cotton in the 1980s. The design features red and green flowers, and its central motif is an encircled map of Africa. The red, green and black spots on this design are inspired by guineafowl, a speckled bird found across sub-Saharan Read More …
This is one of a pair of Kangas from Kenya, East Africa, made from machine-printed cotton in the 1980s. The design features a blue and yellow floral motif. Kangas are bought in pairs and worn as an outfit with one wrapped as a skirt and one as a top, shawl or headcovering. They usually feature Read More …