Adinkra Printmaking

Adinkra symbols lend themselves to be a great subject matter when considering the art of printmaking.  As a class we looked at Adinkra cloth, which is made by the Ashanti people in Ghana, Africa.  The Ashanti create these cloths by first carving symbols into gourds and then stamping the symbols onto cloth using an ink that is made from bark. Many symbols can be combined on different areas of the cloth to tell stories.  Adinkra cloths were traditionally made to be worn by people of authority, such as royalty.  

Supplies Needed:

Styrofoam
Construction paper
Handouts with various Adinkra symbols
Pencils
Printing Ink
Brayers
Oil pastels
Sharpies

Day 1: We first discussed Adinkra cloth as a class and located Ghana on a world map. Students were then asked to choose a symbol that related to or described them in some way. The chosen symbols were then drawn and traced onto styrofoam squares. Students made sure to press firmly to imprint the symbol deeply for printing purposes. Students used their styrofoam squares to mark where they would print next week.

Day 2: Students were shown the do's and dont's of printmaking.  The symbols were printed by students using a checker board pattern. Prints were set aside to dry.

Day 3:  The second color of ink was printed and papers were set aside to dry.  This is a good time to discuss borders, if you plan to add them.  We marked our places for the border using rulers and Sharpies. Then students drew a simple design inside each square that related to their symbol in some way.  Students were to look for a line or shape in their symbols that might tie into the look of the symbol.  

Day 4:  Students colored their designs using oil pastel, making sure to color to create a pattern.  These will then be mounted onto black paper for display.