Moth to Cloth: Silk in Africa (Fig. 1) focused on a fiber not typically associated with African textiles: silk. This important exhibition curated by Roslyn Walker, Senior Curator of the Arts of Africa, the Americas, and the Pacific and The Margaret McDermott Curator of African Art, brought attention to the role of silk and silk production in Ghana, Nigeria, and Madagascar during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Throughout the gallery, Walker curated areas where the viewer could see beyond the displayed museum objects and reflect on the process and raw materials. By doing this, she posed the question: Where is African silk today?
Moth to Cloth showcased five distinct garments, allowing viewers to see a variety of silk and silk sources available to weavers and textile producers in each country. Silk has been part of textile production across the continent for centuries. There is not just one type...