Adire Eleko Olokun Woman’s Wrapper
Artist: Irana (Iraha )Rdlen
Yoruba people, Nigeria
Circa 1960s
Cotton (2 panels), starch-resist and stencil dyed with indigo
74 x 67 ¾ ins (185 x 169.4 cm)

A classic design in the adire eleko repertoire, this distinctive configuration of patterns is titled Olukun after the orisha or female deity of the ocean, wealth and prosperity  in the Yoruba pantheon. The abundance associated with Olukun is conveyed by the number and variety of geometric and representational motifs, including cassava leaves, chieftancy leaf symbols, birds, tortoises, chameleons and fat lizards framed by sun and moon.  Even abstract patterns are named, such as the diagonally divided checkerboard (second left and second right square in the center) which is known as ayed’egbe or the world is on its side.” Composed of two expertly joined panels of factory produced cloth, the design comprises two blocks of ten finely painted and stenciled repeat mirror images (twenty squares in total) surrounded by a narrow border featuring a different sequence of motifs.

Although the distinctive adire eleko tradition first developed around 1910, the art form saw a flourishing period of experimentation, adaptation and innovation during the 1960s, which was particularly associated with individual artists and known workshops that developed their own styles and often signed their work. Here, the letters Irana (Iraha) Rdlen placed at one edge indicate either the signature or initials of the artist who conceived, executed and dyed this refined composition.

Price on request