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African Lace A History of Trade, Creativity and Fashion in Nigeria edited by Barbara Plankensteiner and Nath Mayo Adediran Ghent: Snoeck Publishers, 2010.256 pp., 155 color, 45 b/w illustrations, maps, diagram, glossary, bibliography, index. $51.00, paper
reviewed by Suzanne Gott
The edited volume African Lace: A History of Trade, Creativity and Fashion in Nigeria was produced as part of a collaborative research, exhibition, and publication project headed by Barbara Plankensteiner, curator of the Africa collection of the Museum für Völkerkunde, Vienna, and Nath Mayo Adediran, Director of Museums at the National Commission for Museums and Monuments, Nigeria. This project marks the continuation of a collaborative relationship developed for the 2007 exhibition Benin - Kings and Rituals: Court Arts from Nigeria. The African Lace project represents a more fully developed partnership between the two institutions, with 2011 exhibition venues at Nigeria's National Museum, Lagos, and National Museum, Ibadan, following the 2010 exhibition opening at the Museum für Völkerkunde, Vienna.
The "African Lace" exhibition and catalogue provide the first substantive examination of the development, trade history, and socio-cultural significance of the industrial embroideries, popularly known as "lace," produced for the West African market since the early 1960s by Austrian, Swiss and, most recently, Nigerian textile companies. The major manufacturers of these embroideries, located in the west Austrian province of Vorarlberg, have directed their production and marketing efforts toward Nigeria, the largest and most enduring market for African lace. The exhibition catalogue features twelve essays by museum professionals, academics, and journalists in Austria, Nigeria, and North America.
The essay, "African Lace: The Project," by coeditors Plankensteiner and Adediran, introduces African "lace" embroideries and outlines major...