Barkcloth Paintings and Improvisational Piecing

Woman carrying baskets

I'm long overdue in sharing these gorgeous barkcloth paintings with you. I found them in the 'Container Craft Market" in Kampala, last year. Each design is individually painted, and depicts an aspect of life for the people of Uganda. They measure about 5" X 7". I think it's a natural fit to combine these with improvisational piecing, and at the bottom of this entry, I've included a photo of a small piece I made using one of these pieces, with strip pieced borders. You could also make a larger wall-hanging including several of these, much as I've done with

Men with spears

the screen prints of animals, in other work. I'll be adding all of these to the www.kitambaa.com website in the next day or two. At $5.95 each, they're a bargain - truly. They're light as can be, so I'll make the shipping free of charge from now until the end of the year. Sadly you will still have to pay the HST, but there's not much I can do about that! If you'd like me to set some of these aside for you, you can also email me directly, at info@pippamoore.ca.

Dancing women and drummer

Man with bananas

Two women carrying pots

Two women carrying pineapples

Three warriors

Woman at market stall

Woman with baby

At home

By the way, the barkcloth is made from the bark of a certain kind of fig tree that grows near Lake Victoria. It's pounded to a pulp, much like paper is when it's being made, and then it's spread in a thin layer to dry. It's easy to stitch through, so in this piece, I made a black square ready to receive the barkcloth painting as soon as the rest of it was finished. I was very happy with it, and hope you like it too.