Tye-dyed cloth (adire oniko)
To gaze down into an active indigo dye vat is to witness an intense natural process. This cloth is testimony to the range of hues accomplished by Nigerian dyers who relied on seventeen species of indigo. Its puckered surface is reminiscent of the golden-purple fermentation bubbles that collect on the top layer of a dye bath at an early stage. To achieve the very dark blue-black, the cloth would be dipped over and over again, with time out of the dyebath to allow essential oxidation to occur.
Cotton cloth with indigo dye (tie-dye)
64 3/8 x 59 5/8 in. (163.5 x 151.5 cm)
Gift of the Christensen Fund
2001.986