Like its geography, the African tribal decor is also replete with contrasts. If this look appeals to you, continue reading to know more about it. Here in this article, Gharpedia has brought some of the core elements of the African décor style, such as African vases, African tribal wall art, African furniture, African print cushion covers, African art décor, African wall décor, etc.
African Continent
The African continent is one with many contrasts, divided in half at the equator by a band of dense forests. Egypt is one of the great ancient civilizations, whose past is well documented compared to other African civilizations. In contrast, there are still tribes that lead a Stone Age existence as hunter-gatherers deep in the equatorial forests or as nomadic huntsmen in the southern deserts.
East Africa borders the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea, and trade with India and the Arab countries over the centuries has made North-East Africa more Arabian in style than African. There are white-domed buildings, minarets, date palms, and bustling markets. Southern Africa has grasslands, lakes, mountains and semi-deserts, and wildlife, as people have traditionally lived off the land as herdsmen and farmers. Much of Africa’s rich heritage of art, crafts, and architecture was undermined by colonization, and only recently has pride in the true African style re-emerged.
Updated Traditions of African Tribal Decor
The textiles of West Africa are amazingly varied. Traditional African fabric patterns were tie-dyed or patterned using the mud-resist technique and coloured with indigo or other organic plant dyes. Now, for African textiles, modern dyes are used, with mixtures of old and new designs. Some of the most interesting feature objects are bicycles or clocks as design motifs set within traditional border patterns. Utility objects such as African baskets, African rugs or African pottery remain unchanged. For the export market, authentic African products including fabrics and home items have been incorporated into beading, trinkets, and wood carvings. The abstract African fabric patterns and simple shapes fit in well with the contemporary interior design style. Without African décor style, the interior of any house may look incomplete.
African Colours
The southern African colour palette comes from the earth. Red ochre, yellow, burnt orange and black dominate, with any other available colour used to riotous effect. In some places, telephone wires are split open and the multi-coloured wires are used to weave baskets; in others, tin cans are recycled to make storage trunks, lamps and toys.
Style up your Room with African Décor Elements
Creating an authentic African-style room should not be difficult or expensive. The look is simple and relies on a few well-chosen African décor objects, shapes and colours. The walls are roughly textured and painted in bands of colours, dark at the bottom and light above. Patterns are loosely geometric and rhythmic. There are specialist stores that deal in African furniture, African art décor and crafts; baskets, masks, African print cushion covers, woven wall hangings and soapstone carvings are always on sale in Oxfam stores and it is always worth exploring flea markets and junk shops for stools, tables or curios. If you want to try your hands at painting cushion covers, you should read our blog:
So, go ahead and create the African-style look by stencilling a pattern on the wall; just remember to roughen the wall a little first to make it more authentic. Add African print cushion covers or a cushion cover printed with potato printing to jazz up the look. Create your African-style room by bringing in the African décor style elements such as African vases, African wall décor, African furniture, African baskets, African rugs etc.
Now that you are familiar with African décor style, you must also look at our blog on another very interesting style, which is the Moroccan style.
Moroccan Décor Style: Unveiling The Ravishing world of Decors
Author Bio
Huta Raval – An English Literature and Journalism Topper, Huta Raval has graduated from the L D Arts College, Ahmedabad. Post serving for 23 years in the NBFC and Public Library Sectors her desire for ‘writing the unwritten’ brought her to the creative field of content writing. Her clientele comprises of NGOs, Blogging Platforms, Newspapers, Academic Institutions, et al.