l'abe pata

The rear view of l'abe pata ( meaning under the underwear) uses the sokoto to echo Yoruba traditional knowledge systems of social and gender hierarchy and illustrate the continuous evolution of genderized language in the Yoruba culture as a product of colonization. The sokoto (part of a four-piece yoruba traditional suit originally worn by men) are made of different length and shape but generally resembles a pair of trousers and are held around the waist by a fabric cord. In Nigeria today, sokoto is worn by the masses irrespective of gender- Therefore, The assumption of time that roots encountered present-day customs & traditions in ancient/indigenous traditional practice is brought into question. This deliberation is projected onto the sculpture as the legs of the sokoto become weaved together, they are undoubtedly recontextualized to mimic the form of a skirt ( an article of clothing commonly associated with women). 

In the Invention of Women, Oyewunmi Oyeronke writes “in no situation in Yoruba society) was a male, by virtue of his body type, inherently superior to a female” in describing the material distinctions between pre-colonial Yoruba socio-gender hierarchy and Western socio-gender hierarchy. The constructions of the western socio-gender hierarchy are paralleled in the affixed totem-like lumber running vertically on each end of the sculpture, signifying binary oppositions found in the English language like man/woman or male/female that essentializes the man/male as the norm and female as the exception. 

Words pairs like “okunrin/obrinrin” and “ako/abo” that specify only anatomical differences with respect to reproduction, remind us that procreation was important in pre-colonial Yoruba to communicate anatomical descriptions rather than evoke hierarchical implications. Pre-colonial Yoruba socio-gender hierarchical structure recognized separate, gender-specific yet interdependent societal roles and positions ex. Public mothers and diviners, as opposed to the western socio-gender framework that marries the biological body with the social body to create its unique hierarchical experience.  The highly constituted movements of the sokoto fabric signify the dynamisms of Yoruba socio-gender hierarchy, as a shifting social position/order in relation to those who you were interacting with based on superiority (kings to slaves) and relative age. 

Similar to the front view, This sculpture receives its main form using angular folds of the sokoto to create a gift-wrap-like configuration, metaphorically paralleling the imposition of western ideas on the Yoruba through colonization. The urban-like landscape denotes the transformation of culture and place, as well as the evolution of institutions in relation to knowledge production. l'abe pata invites the viewer to examine the origins of their social value systems and reimagine culture in its assumptions of time in relation to social-gender hierarchy.