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Vest
Wodaabe
20th century, 1950–75
Object Place: Niger
Medium/Technique
Cotton fabric, yarn, dyed
Dimensions
Overall: 36 x 29 cm (14 3/16 x 11 7/16 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Geneviève McMillan in memory of Reba Stewart
Accession Number2009.2766
NOT ON VIEW
CollectionsContemporary Art, Africa and Oceania, Fashion and Textiles
ClassificationsTextiles
This colorful vest is worn by young Wodaabe men (also known as Bororo Fulani) during a series of dances called "gerewol". The Wodaabe are well-known for their body adornment and their annual festival "Yaake" which is a kind of beauty contest that involves the young men. The best dancer and best adorned would have a chance to win his future wife. The Wodaabe decorative tunics are ornate and are considered valuable objects. These tunics complete the contest adornment, and are made for young men by their girlfriends. They are cotton cloth, and designs may vary from one tunic to another but they are alway asymmetric, abstract or geometric.
Provenance1975, given by Carol Beckwith to Geneviève McMillan (b. 1922 - d. 2008), Cambridge, MA; 2008, to the Geneviève McMillan and Reba Stewart Foundation, Cambridge; 2009, gift of the Geneviève McMillan and Reba Stewart Foundation to the MFA. (Accession Date: June 17, 2009)