More than 200 people attended the opening reception for “Kuba Textiles: Geometry in Form, Space, and Time at the Neuberger Museum of Art, Purchase College, SUNY, on February 28. In the present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Kuba peoples are renowned for their cut-pile raffia cloths. Characterized by resplendent surface elaboration, these garments are detailed and complex like other Kuba decorative arts, a feature found in no other African kingdom. Remarkable not only for their beauty but also for their large scale, they are worn on special occasions by men and women, and display the status of the wearer. Marie-Therese Brincard, curator, presented a talk on the Kuba people and the extraordinary textiles they’ve produced, that are now on view in this historic exhibition, organized by the Museum, through June 28, 2015.
