Journeys in Beadwork: Culture and Tradition in the Eastern Cape & Dialogues in Contemporary Style (2012)

An international exhibition of beadwork by Mfengu people of the Eastern Cape province of South Africa, presented in partnership with the Nelson Mandela Bay Art Museum, is being displayed at the Shipley Art Gallery. The exhibition will be accompanied by a spectacle of contemporary fashion inspired by traditional beadwork, featuring work from South African Designer Laduma Ngxokolo.

The Shipley Art Gallery, opened in 1917, is recognized as a National Centre for Contemporary Craft and has built up one of the best collections outside of London featuring ceramics, wood, metal, glass, textiles and furniture pieces. It has a permanent collection of over 500 oil paintings and watercolours which make up the ‘Shipley Bequest’. The collection ranges from 16^th and 17^th century paintings originating from Germany, Italy, Nederland and Belgium to 18^th and 19^th century British paintings. This venue, on Prince Consort Road, Gateshead, is the setting for the ‘Journeys in Beadwork’ exhibition, on display from the twenty-first of April until the second of September.

The exhibition is in two parts. One part explores the fascinating history of South African beadwork, featuring traditional costumes, clothing and aprons from the Mfengu people and reflects the life of the beaders and their roles and status within their community. For beaders, the work is a reflection of love and self-expression with each colour having a different meaning. In particular, white beads represent spirituality. Items may be given as a gift or during courtship. The more beads an Mfengu person wears, the more loved they are. The display includes items such as aprons, skirts, collars & bags; made by the Mfengu people and worn during rituals; similar to a party outfit, some of which date back to around 1940.

 

 The other section showcases the influence that traditional beadwork has had on contemporary designers such as Laduma Ngxokolo. There is a clear contrast in the two displays. The modern exhibition is much more aesthetically appealing with brighter colours and more flattering fits of clothes. It pushes the boundaries of technological advancements by exploring the idea of combining QR codes with fashion. Thorunn Arnadottir combined modern technology with traditional beadwork to create garments that are scannable by smartphone to unlock information about the wearer. In a time where a person’s most personal information, likes, dislikes, photos and other details are so easily accessible by social networking sites; Thorunn takes the 21^st century population closer to controlling how we are perceived when meeting someone in person for the first time.
 

The Mfengu people originate from South Africa and are closely related to the Zulu. Originally farmers, the Mfengu quickly built themselves schools, created their own newspapers and translated international literature into their own language. They adapted to change easily due to their lack of tribal social-structure. An assortment of over 100 items- collars, anklets, aprons, chest pieces- made by this tribe are on loan to the Shipley from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan Art Museum and are being shown in the UK for the first time.