I love hair braiding! And braiding inspired me to figure out a way folks can braid hair as well as create a composition to keep. I wanted to create a learning tool that can be reused and or altered for practicing.
This task was as easy as reminding myself of all of the Lorna Simpson projects I had done in the past. Braids for Days allowed participants the opportunity to learn and practice braiding as well as create a composition with the use of hair, color and image.
Hair braiding has been estimated to exist for thousands of years and used by every civilization. Most connect braiding with Africa and this would make sense since according to science, life began there but hair braiding has and is used by all countries and cultures.
Humans have used hair braiding for all sorts of reasons. A persons style of braids can show status (wealth and/or lack there of), maintain neatness and/or cleanliness of hair, signify marital status, and/or connection to a group of people.
Hair braiding is, usually, communal. For some cultures it is a time to talk, gossip, tell stories and connect to one another. I love hair braiding and with this project, anyone can practice the ancient art of hair braiding.
Supplies:
- image of a face without the top of the head.
- glue (wet glue and glue gun)
- synthetic hair in any color
- card-stock
- miscellaneous ribbon, beads, jewels, etc.
First you must prep the heads with hair onto card-stock with a glue gun. The hot glue acts like a scalp, holding the synthetic hair in place despite pulling.
Tape the completed setup down to a table and begin braiding.
There are many kinds of braids and I would encourage experimentation of what can be done before finalizing the composition. Challenge yourself to create and name your own kind of braid.
Different kinds of braids:
- cornrows
- box braids
- french braids
- fishtail braids
- snake braids
- maiden braids
- twists and so on...
Link to a video short of the workshop: https://instagram.com/p/1YsJ6ByDUY/?taken-by=elanhiart
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