Kente Cloth Inspired Reduction Prints

Asante Cloth- or Kente, is a ceremonial cloth hand-woven on a loom in Ghana, Africa. Rich, colorful repeating patterns are woven into 4-inch strips and are sewn together into larger pieces of cloth. Cloths come in various colors, sizes and designs and are worn during very important social and religious occasions, but kente is more than just cloth. It is a visual representation of history, philosophy, ethics, oral literature, moral values, social code of conduct, religious beliefs, political thought and aesthetic principles.

In this project, LS Art Club members created their own patterned kente by using a 3-step reduction printing process. A pattern was first scratched into a rectangular piece of printing foam and this design was printed six times on colored paper with ink of their choice. Next, the plate was 'reduced' by cutting out areas to create new patterns. This reduced printing plate was printed on top of the first six prints. Plates were reduced one last time and were printed once more with a third color!