Unforgettable Textile Design in Everyday Things

If you look at the objects that you encounter in a day you will more than likely find that at least one of them is touched by design with cultural antecedents outside your own.  Many of the designs we see in everyday life come from textile surface or structural design that have been passed down through multiple generations proving that they are unforgettable and continue to have appeal.  Textile surface design or applied design is when a finish of some type is applied to a textile.  Embroidery, painting, or tie dyeing are examples. Structural design incorporates the design as fabric is produced, such as weaving a tapestry or creating lace. What is fascinating is when that surface or structural design is incorporated into a different type of object than for what it was originally intended. A pair of socks could have a Navajo geometric design knitted into them.  A tray might have an Incan Tocapu design painted onto it.  An African Kente Cloth design might be printed onto a fabric shower curtain.  Now the materials and the way of creating the design have both changed but the visual idea of the design is still dominate.

Producers decided how far to take the use of the design on which they base their work.  Is it a direct copy and has it been approved by the original creating group?  Is it an inspired piece that uses ideas from other works?  Is it a piece created in traditional ways by a group in the same ways as their predecessors? Is it even a textile or another form of media that uses like graphic ideas?  These are questions that play into the design process of the producers, values, and perception and evaluation of the design.

A selection of nine projects from Clothing, Textile and Interior Design 446 Cultural Dynamics Course at The University of Alabama are presented. Each project has a representative everyday object that can been found in today’s global market.

Polynesia Tapa Cloth

The Technique

What process was/is used to make the design in general?

Tapa Cloth is made from the spongy inner bark of the paper mulberry tree. The trees must be one to two years old, then the outer bark is removed from the inner bark and soaked in water overnight. The bark is beaten with a wooden or whalebone beater until it is flat. Once they reached the desired thinness, the cloth was either sold as is or it was decorated with dyes. These cloths were used for clothing, bedding, and gifting (Reynolds, 2016).

Is it surface, structural, or a combination?

Polynesian Tapa Cloth is combination design because it incorporates both surface and structural design in its process. Surface design is used to produce different designs on the cloth using painting and dyeing techniques. These techniques add different visuals and textures to the cloth in order to create aesthetic dimension of the fabric. Structural design is incorporated as the fabric is being produced. These designs are created while the cloth is still being beaten. It can be incorporated with carved wooden boards or beaters with designs etched into them.

What materials were/are used for the design?

Design was applied to the tapa cloth in a variation of ways. They would freehand paint designs onto the cloth using a variety of dyes. They would use design templates that consisted of fish, dogs, flowers, leaves, and geometrical shapes. They later discovered carved wooden boards that allowed them to beat the design onto the cloth. A stamping technique became popular where they would use plant materials to stamp the design onto the cloth. Metal tools later became introduced to tapa makes which allowed them to beat the designs into the cloth. With this method, they could beat different dyed tapa strips into the cloth, creating a repeated design.

Who did the work?

Women were typically in charge of creating the tapa cloth. Gender roles were clearly defined in Polynesian society, dictating that women utilized soft materials and fibers while working in the arts. The women were in charge of preparing the bark for beating, flattening it out into cloth, and decorating the cloth with a variation dyes and designs (“Hiapo”).

What was/is the purpose of the textile with this surface design?

Tapa cloth served as both daily and ceremonial clothing. “It was made into headdresses, turbans, loincloths, sashes, girdles, skirts, and ponchos” (“Embedded Nature”). Tapa cloth also had use as bedcovers, wall dividers, wrapping for sculptures and skulls, and for masks. Tapa bed coverings and wall hangings were very popular for decoration in the home. Tapa cloth was very important for important life events such as birth, weddings, and death. The accumulation of large amounts of tapa cloth signified wealth and status (“Embedded Nature”).

Is the technique still being carried out today by the culture? Do they still practice the technique, teach it, and produce objects with the technique?

Polynesian Tapa Cloth surface design is still used and produced in many textile and design instances today. Many textiles and designs have been influenced by Polynesian tapa cloth and is used from its unique patterns and designs, but there is also a market for antique tapa cloths.

The original process of using the inner barks of tree, most commonly the mulberry trees, is how tapa cloth is made. Once these trees are 1-2 years only the bark is split from the branches and trunks and soaked in water or placed up to flatter. The outer bark is scraped and removed from the inner bark, historically using shells, coral, or a knife (Larsen, 2011). This inner bark is then used to make the cloth, with clean and well-scraped bark producing better quality cloth. The bark is then beaten and layered with several bark strips and a tapa cloth is created (“Embedded Nature: Tapa Cloths”). For all of the antique tapa cloths on sale today, this original process is what is produced. What is most commonly sold is antique rugs or wall hangings that were made in Polynesia. Many of the items on Etsy and Ebay are from the 1900’s ranging from prices of $20- $500. There is also a higher end market for more prestigious antique tapa cloths, many from the 1700’s (Moonan, 1998). A book with tapa cloth specimens called “Important Tribal Art”, sold for $43,700. There is a large range of products and desire for antique tapa cloths, and it is an important aspect of tapa cloths in popular culture today (Moonan, 1998).

Popular Culture Today

    How is this surface design or structural design or combination produced today?

    Although antique tapa cloths have a market in popular culture today, there is also many textiles that have been influenced and come from tapa cloth designs. The items produced today range from bed covers, clothing items, pillows, lampshades, carpets, wall art, and much more. Most of these items are tapa cloth inspired, and may often get mistaken or called a basic tribal design. Each of the items are produced differently, but very few are actually produced using the original tapa cloth process. Most textile items are woven or produced to mimic and replicate tapa cloth designs as an aesthetic, not as the process. Many of the tapa cloth were familiar with today is cotton fabric made from densely woven fibers, trying to mimic the texture of the cloth not the fabric itself (Jane, 1970).

    Has the visual of the surface or structural design been used in material culture production today in popular culture or the fashion world?

    Image 1: Tapa cloth inspired black, brown, and white patterned duvet cover

    Image 2: Organic Cotton Barkcloth Cushion

    Image 3: Tapa Cloth Style Cylinder Vase with Handpainted Polynesian Inspired Design

    Each of these images represent tapa cloth items in pop culture and the fashion world today. Image 1 represents a tapa cloth inspired duvet cover. In this instance, like many of the other designs, tapa cloth is just used as an inspiration. It is made to look like tapa cloth, but does not include any of the original processes of tapa cloth production. It is handmade to order woven design, but is produced with cotton and sateen. This specific duvet cover is sold on etsy by a american made designer, and ranges in price by size from $179- $239.

    Image 2 represents a tapa cloth cushion. This item is shown on a website that discusses all types of handmade tapa cloth items. Unlike the bedcover, this pillow does represent more of the originality of the tapa cloth process, not just mimicking the design. It is made with a cotton fabric of densely woven fibers, but the material itself is similar to the feel of tapa cloth. This website got permission from the designer of this pillow, Carol Seatory. It is a dense weave and very durable. This specific pillow is not for sale, but many other ones similar in design are available on many home furnishing websites as well at etsy and ebay usually around $100-$200 per pillow.

    Image 3 shows a different type of tapa cloth inspiration, but one that is still popular in culture today. This image is of a tapa cloth inspired vase. In this case, like the duvet, it is just an inspired design to look like a design on Polynesian tapa cloth. The design is hand painted on a wooden vase, and is produced by a american artist. It is sold on etsy and is priced at $18, but many other vases sold have higher prices.

    Is it copied or used as inspiration?

    Image 1: In this instance, like many of the other designs, tapa cloth is just used as an inspiration. It is made to look like tapa cloth, but does not include any of the original processes of tapa cloth production.

    Image 2: Unlike the bedcover, this pillow does represent more of the originality of the tapa cloth process, not just mimicking the design.

    Image 3:This image is of a tapa cloth inspired vase. In this case, like the duvet, it is just an inspired design to look like a design on Polynesian tapa cloth.

    What materials are used in the production?

    Image 1: It is handmade to order woven design, but is produced with cotton and sateen.

    Image 2: It is made with a cotton fabric of densely woven fibers, but the material itself is similar to the feel of tapa cloth. It is a dense weave and very durable.

    Image 3: The design is hand painted on a wooden vase, and is produced by a American artist.

    Where can it be purchased?

    Image 1: This specific duvet cover is sold on etsy by a american made designer, and ranges in price by size from $179- $239.

    Image 2: This specific pillow is not for sale, but many other ones similar in design are available on many home furnishing websites as well at etsy and ebay usually around $100-$200 per pillow.

    Image 3: It is sold on etsy and is priced at $18, but many other vases sold have higher prices.

    Who is producing it?

    Image 1: This specific duvet cover is sold on etsy by a american made designer, and ranges in price by size from $179- $239.

    Image 2: This website got permission from the designer of this pillow, Carol Seatory. This specific pillow is not for sale, but many other ones similar in design are available on many home furnishing websites as well at etsy and ebay usually around $100-$200 per pillow.

    Image 3: It is sold on etsy and is priced at $18, but many other vases sold have higher prices.

    How much does it cost?

    Image 1: This specific duvet cover is sold on etsy by a american made designer, and ranges in price by size from $179- $239.

    Image 2: This specific pillow is not for sale, but many other ones similar in design are available on many home furnishing websites as well at etsy and ebay usually around $100-$200 per pillow.

    Image 3: It is sold on etsy and is priced at $18, but many other vases sold have higher prices.

    Legal/Moral Issues

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      Has the culture group who produced the technique you researched given permission for the use of their work with the examples discussed in Part II?

      There is no documentation that the countries throughout Polynesia have given written permission for anyone to use their technique/ patterns from their ancient tapa cloths. The patterns that the Polynesian women created on the tapa cloths have been used as an inspiration for modern designs (Images 1-3).

      Discuss the laws that govern cultural intellectual property in the country where the culture resides.

      Recently there have been drastic changes in French Polynesia intellectual property right laws. As a result of a new law, French patents, trade mark, and design registrations applications filed since 3 March 2004 will no longer be automatically protected in French Polynesia. Artists will be subjected to a new acknowledgement process by the Polynesian IP Bureau.

      What laws in the US govern cultural intellectual property?

      The United States has intellectual property laws that are in place as an incentive for artists to develop and create new works that can benefit society by ensuring the artist they will be protected from others stealing their designs and innovations (Intellectual Property Law).

      Is the design considered sacred and should not be reproduced because of its sacred nature?

      The tapa cloth designs originated from spiritual and native patterns based off of celebration and were used for trade. In more recent years, the tapa cloth patterns are used as inspiration for future artists and art forms. Although the origin of the tapa cloth came from spiritual/ sacred nature, the patterns and technique is very capable to be reproduced by new artists (Karr). In fact many artist sell their tapa cloth tapestries on the modern website Etsy.  

      Is the technique/visual representation of the culture’s work considered public domain?

       

      The technique of making a tapa cloth has been passed down by thousands of different Polynesian families from generation to generation even after Western colonialism. Women, who mainly created tapa cloth, saw them as wealth in social settings. The social aspect of the tapa cloth was not separated by class and anyone could wear or have in their homes. Since the creation of the tapa cloth technique/visual it has always been a part of the public domain  the Polynesian people do not have a problem with sharing their technique (Suggs, 2018).