Description
Book SynopsisIn southeastern Morocco, around the oasis of Tafilalet, the Ait Khabbash people weave brightly colored carpets, embroider indigo head coverings, paint their faces with saffron, and wear ornate jewelry. Their extraordinarily detailed arts are rich in cultural symbolism; they are always breathtakingly beautiful—and they are typically made by women. Like other Amazigh (Berber) groups (but in contrast to the Arab societies of North Africa), the Ait Khabbash have entrusted their artistic responsibilities to women. Cynthia Becker spent years in Morocco living among these women and, through family connections and female fellowship, achieved unprecedented access to the artistic rituals of the Ait Khabbash. The result is more than a stunning examination of the arts themselves, it is also an illumination of women''s roles in Islamic North Africa and the many ways in which women negotiate complex social and religious issues.
One of the reasons Amazigh women are artists is that the
Table of Contents
- A Note on Transcription and Transliteration
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- Chapter One. Ait Khabbash Textiles: Weaving Metaphors of Identity
- Chapter Two. The Art of Dressing the Body
- Chapter Three. Dance Performances: Negotiating Gender and Social Change
- Chapter Four. Women as Public Symbols of Identity: The Adornment of the Bride and Groom
- Chapter Five. Performing Amazigh Gender Roles: Wedding Ceremonies
- Chapter Six. Oh, My Sudanese Mother: The Legacy of Slavery in Ait Khabbash Art
- Chapter Seven. Contemporary Amazigh Arts: Giving Material Form to Amazigh Consciousness
- Appendix 1. Selected Songs from Ait Khabbash Weddings
- Notes
- References
- Index
