ceremonial and anniversary cloths of selected institutions in ghana

244 Pages·2010·7.44 MB·English

CEREMONIAL AND ANNIVERSARY CLOTHS OF
SELECTED INSTITUTIONS IN GHANA: AN
APPRAISAL.

By

EMMANUEL REXFORD KODWO AMISSAH
MA. B. Ed (HONS), DAE.

Faculty of Fine Art
College of Art and Social Sciences.

© Department of General Art Studies
August 2009
CEREMONIAL AND ANNIVERSARY CLOTHS OF
SELECTED INSTITUTIONS IN GHANA: AN
APPRAISAL.

By

EMMANUEL REXFORD KODWO AMISSAH
MA. B.Ed (HONS), DAE,

A Dissertation Presented to the School of Graduate Studies,
Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi
in Partial Fulfilment and Requirements for the Award of Degree of

DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN ART EDUCATION.

Faculty of Fine Art
College of Art and Social Sciences.

© Department of General Art Studies
August 2009
DECLARATION

I hereby declare that this submission is my own work towards the PhD and that, to the
best of my knowledge, it contains no material previously published by any other
person nor material which has been accepted for the award of any other degree of the
university, except where due acknowledgement has been made in the text.

E. R. K. AMISSAH ……………………………… …………………….

(Index No 8000505) Signature Date

DR. S. K. AMENUKE ............................................... …..…………………

SUPERVISOR 1
Signature Date

DR KODWO EDUSEI …………………………… …………………….

SUPERVISOR 2 Signature Date

DR. JOE ADU-AGYEM ………………………….. ………………………

HEAD OF DEPARTMENT Signature Date

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I am very grateful to the Almighty God for giving me the wisdom, knowledge and
strength to complete this thesis. My special thanks go to my supervisor Dr. S. K.
Amenuke a Senior Lecturer of the Department of General Art Studies for the pains he
took in reading through the script and offering useful suggestions and prompting me at
every minor mistake to make this project a reality.

I also acknowledge with deep sense of gratitude the guidance and suggestions of Dr.
Kodwo Edusei, my second supervisor who despite his numerous assignments made
time to offer valuable suggestions. I also wish to thank the entire staff of the
Department of General Art Studies (Art Education) for their moral support.

I am also very grateful to my dear wife, Mrs. Elizabeth Maame Esi Amissah, Principal
Administrative Assistant, Office of the Vice Chancellor, KNUST for helping in typing
the scripts and also encouraging me to go through this work. I say thank you.

I would like to thank all my colleagues especially, Patrique Ato de-Graft Yankson,
Frimpong Kwaku Duku, Goerge Brako-Hiapa, Samuel Owusu-Wireko, Seth
MacKoffie Fiagbey, Joseph Fiifi Esseku, Isaac Aboagye and Alex Aboagye through
whose encouragement and moral support I was able to complete this thesis.
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There are hosts of educators, some individuals, groups, institutions, friends and well-
wishers who in diverse ways gave me help and encouragement to carry out this thesis.
To them I say thank you.

August, 2009 ERKA

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ABSTRACT
In designing for ceremonial and anniversary cloths, the corporate identities of
organizations and institutions serve as the main motifs. They come in various designs
with simple and complex motifs with varying shades and tints of colours. However,
despite the varying designs that appear in most ceremonial and anniversary cloths in
Ghana, they fail to capture the aesthetic qualities inherent in the various institution’s
corporate identities and logos. The basic elements in many of these designs portray
conflict of motif arrangements and poor textural background and hence do not reflect
the ideals and philosophies of the institutions. The thesis therefore sought to appraise
some of the existing ceremonial and anniversary cloths of selected institutions in
Ghana and to propose some principles to serve as a guide for designing ceremonial
and anniversary cloths for institutions in Ghana.

The researcher employed the qualitative method since it lays emphasis on holistic
description i.e. on describing in detail all what goes on in a particular activity.

The researcher found out that most institutions have in their corporate identities
‘adinkra’ symbols which are incorporated in the designs. Some of the cloths do not
profess the ideals and philosophies of the institution. There is also the problem of
improper arrangements of the elements of designs and unsatisfactory application of the
principles of design.
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The researcher recommends that; the guiding principles proposed must be adopted by
textiles designers to help produce high quality designs that can stand test of time.
Designers must pay attention to cultural elements in the corporate identities of
institutions when designing ceremonial and anniversary cloths for them. Textiles
designers should incorporate in their designs elements that may portray the mission,
vision, ideals and philosophies of the institutions in their designs.
August, 2009 E.R.K.A.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Title Page

Declaration i

Acknowledgements ii
.
Abstract. iv

Table of Contents vi.

List of Plates xv

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Background to the Study 1
1.2 Statement of the Problem 3
1.3 Objectives 4
1.4 Hypotheses 5
1.5 Delimitations 5
1.6 Limitation 5
1.7 Importance of the Study 5
1.8 Definition of Terms 6
1.9 Abbreviations 6
1.10 Organisation of the rest of the Text 7

CHAPTER TWO: REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE 9
2.1 Evaluation, Ceremonial and Anniversary Defined 9
2.2 Aesthetics, Appreciation and Criticism 18
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2.3 Heraldry, Crests and Logos 26
2.3.1. Heraldry 27
2.3.2. Crests 29
2.3.3. Logo 33
2.4. Concept of Textile Designing and Symbolisms 35
2.4.1. Designing 35
2.4.2. Symbolism 38
2.4.2.1. Animal Symbolism 47
2.4.2.2. Objects/ \Figures/ Plants 49
2.4.2.3 Colour Symbolism 52
2.4.2.4 Ghanaian Symbolism 56
2.4.2.5 Symbols of shapes and Lines 57
2.4.2.6 Man-made Symbols 58
2.4.3.7. Adinkra Symbols 59
2.4.3.8 Colour Symbolism 71
2.5. History and types of Textiles Printing 75
2.6 Background and History of Ghanaian Printed Cloths 77
2.7 Types of Cloths for traditional and contemporary use 80
2.7.1. Tie and Batik dyeing 82
2.7.2. Industrial Printing fabrics in Ghana 82
2.8 Characteristics of Ghanaian Printed cloths 83
2.8.1. Wax Printed Fabrics 83
2.8.2 Fancy Prints 85
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2.8.3 Java Prints 85
2.9 Cross-Cultural Influence on Ghanaian Printed Fabrics 89

CHAPTER THREE: METHODOLOGY 93
3.1 Research Design 93
3.2 Library Research 94
3.3 Population for the Study 95
3.4 Data Collection Instrument 96
3.4.1 Personal Interviews 96
3.4.2 Opinionnaire 97
3.5 Data Collection Procedure 98
3.6 Validation of Instruments 98
3.7 Data Analysis Plan 98

CHAPTER FOUR: PRESENTATION AND DISCUSSION OF RESULTS 99

4.1 Educational Institutions 100

4.1.1 Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology 100

4.1.1.1 Profile of the Institution 100
4.1.1.2 Vision and Mission 103

4.1.1.3 Corporate identity 103
4.1.1.4 Appreciation of the cloths 106

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