Le pagne joue un rôle primordial dans les sociétés de l’Afrique de l’Ouest et du centre. Véritables liens intergénérationnels, les dessins classiques véhiculent une histoire, un message et des images intemporels.
Le pagne arrive en Afrique au début du XIXe siècle. Ce sont les mercenaires africains recrutés par les forces hollandaises pour défendre leurs territoires en Indonésie qui à leur retour des combats dans les îles de Sumatra et Bornéo emmènent avec eux de jolis batiks qui plus tard donneront vie au pagne africain.
La marque Vlisco (producteur de véritable wax hollandais) a décidé de célébrer cet héritage par une série documentaire auprès de ses consommateurs du Togo.
Vlisco est une des sociétés des plus anciennes et des plus prestigieuses dans le design et la reproduction du pagne. La fameuse société de textile de luxe hollandaise affirme que ses conceptions classiques reflètent le riche patrimoine avec de nombreuses histoires réconfortantes à raconter.
You don’t get married with empty hands. In every region of Togo, before marrying, the young woman gets ready by putting together her baby clothes, her crockery and a wardrobe full of wax fabric.
Above all, with the help of her parents, her mother in particular, she must have an economic activity which generates an income and a small sum to start up the household. This gives her some financial independence from her husband. In this culture, it is said that when a girl is wed with love as her only baggage, she runs the risk of returning to her mother’s arms in tears very quickly.
Source : Vlisco
One of the stories comes from Togo where us is told that the first name given to this drawing was Je suis assis à mon portail (‘I am sitting at my gate’). The name was a literal reflection of the design, which depicts a lion (or person) sitting at a gate. The name later changed to Gendarmerie (or ‘Force’ in English) as the design reminded some people of the entrance of the Togolese police station.
Source : Vlisco
This motif is derived from the tie-dye technique and is popular in Mali. This circle motif is copied exactly as it is used by Western fashion and textile brands to express an African idiom.
In Nigeria, the design is know as record, thanks to the circular shape of the motif, which reminds many customers and traders of records that were played on a gramophone.
Source : Vlisco
The designer meant to communicate the action of spraying away the background.
But the pattern has been interpreted as symbolising Fly-Tox or the ‘perfume of Alassane Ouattara’, named after after the top-selling perfume (With Love from Alassane) by business man, former prime minister and now president of Ivory Coast.
Baïgon is also a brand of insecticide.
Also known as: Lover’s Spray (Ghana), Parfum d’Álassane Ouattara (Ivory Coast), Baïgon (Ivory Coast)
Source : Vlisco
Vlisco’s own rich heritage served as a source of inspiration in creating this pattern as a revival of the iconic ‘Record Plaque-plaque’
Source : Vlisco
This classic design, a depiction of a rearing horse, is generally known as the Jumping Horse. In Nigeria it is traditionally worn by Igbo women at their women’s meeting in August. It is known as Je cours plus vite que ma rivale (‘I run faster than my rival’) in Ivory Coast, where it expresses the rivalry between wives because the rearing horse looks as if it were about to run in a race.
Source : Vlisco
Until well into the seventies, Vlisco designers usually worked by commission, but starting in the eighties the designer’s own signature became more and more important to the look of the pattern. This pattern refers to the style of the monumental work that this designer created as a sculptor.
Source : Vlisco
You don’t get married with empty hands. In every region of Togo, before marrying, the young woman gets ready by putting together her baby clothes, her crockery and a wardrobe full of wax fabric.
Above all, with the help of her parents, her mother in particular, she must have an economic activity which generates an income and a small sum to start up the household. This gives her some financial independence from her husband. In this culture, it is said that when a girl is wed with love as her only baggage, she runs the risk of returning to her mother’s arms in tears very quickly.Source : Vlisco
Vlisco designers frequently created patterns on commission. After travelling to Africa, Cees Kranz, the head of the design department at the time, and his successor, Frans van Rood, asked the designer to draw an electric fan.
In Niger they had seen several market vendors with electric fans in their stalls, which gave them a certain status. The pattern is still popular today.
Also known as Table Fan
Source : Vlisco
Vlisco’s best-selling Wax Block pattern. The ‘Happy Family’ design represents the archetypical African family. It is synonymous with the social identity of its wearer. At the centre is the maternal figure, the chicken, surrounded by her chicks and future chicks, i.e. the eggs. The father, i.e. the rooster, is nothing but trouble. That is why only his head is shown. This clearly indicates that the woman plays a pivotal role in the family. ‘Happy Family’ stands for family values from which the wearer derives status.
Source : Vlisco
This heritage design from the 1960s is also known as Bunch of Bananas and Coquillage, which simply means ‘shell’ in English. In Togo this design is known as Abobo to lé gomè in Togo, which means as much as ‘the snail out of its shell’. There is even a village called Abobo, where they celebrate the Abobozan festival in September each year. During the festival, snail dishes are enjoyed by the locals and the snail fabric is a popular choice.
Source : Vlisco
In Nigeria, this design is known as the Big Bible & Snail, a literal interpretation of the motif. The fabric is adored by the Igbos, a tribe in the Eastern part of Nigeria, who wear it during festive periods, such as their August meeting.
Source : Vlisco
« VLISCO fait partie de l’héritage émotionnel par le pagne qui a toujours été porté par nos grands-mamans et cela se transmet de génération en génération. C’est le pagne que l’on utilise lors des grands jours, dont mariage, anniversaire, dot, etc. », affirme la responsable marketing.
Ces tissus sont donc entrés dans le quotidien des femmes africaines en épousant leur histoire, leurs valeurs, leurs aspirations sociales, à travers le temps et l’espace. Il faut savoir que le pagne est devenu pour beaucoup d’Africains un objet de culte qui appartient à l’histoire familiale. Il est une des conditions obligatoires dans les dots aux cérémonies de mariages coutumiers et une partie importante de l’héritage d’une mère à ses filles.
Regardez cette vidéo pour comprendre la signification plus profonde et même l’attachement de leurs consommateurs africains. Cette initiative prend cadre dans la deuxième édition du « mois de la Femme Vlisco », un événement de la marque visant à honorer la femme.
