Mother's Desire

Abstract

<p>This design originated from the investigation of the pre-colonial printing of Adinkra cloth of the Ashanti tribe in Ghana, West Africa. Adinkra clothes are hand printed using indigo dye. The Adinkra symbols on the cloth are used to express people’s thought and feelings. The Adinkra symbols used for this design express the designer’s desires for her child’s journey in life and were arranged on the cloth to create the map of Africa. The cloth was designed using Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop. The process evolved from a dress that transforms from a strapless bulb shaped dress of contrasting colors to a long dress that features her child’s face in different scales adding interest. Ecofriendly printing was utilized for the cloth of this garment to address the shade variations issues in indigo dyeing. This creative design piece also addresses sustainability issues by transforming into an alternate look thereby, leaving a good environmental footprint.</p>