Mbuti Barkcloth Panel, Democratic Republic of Congo

Soak the inner bark. Beat it soft. Then paint it by hand, freehand, with pigments from nature. Among the Mbuti, this was traditionally women’s work.

This barkcloth panel comes from the Ituri Forest in the Democratic Republic of Congo, 20th century. The cream ground, about two and a half feet tall, is filled with dense vertical columns of small hooked and bracket-like marks in dark pigment, each slightly different from the next. The edges stay irregular and organic. A soft horizontal crease crosses the middle, where the cloth was once folded.

Everyday material, turned into drawing. Count the marks if you have the evening.