LINES | OHIRI 001

STRIPES ARE A KEY ELEMENT IN AKAN JEWELLERY. THEY ARE THE ARTISANS SIGNATURE AND ALSO A FORM OF SPIRITUAL AND ARTISTIC EXPRESSION. LINES IS INSPIRED BY AKAN STRIPES, LINES AND BODY

Photographer: Mehdi Sefrioui
Art and Creative Director: Akebehi Kpolo
Muses: Zoe Alayrangues, Nicolas Hupliez
Make Up Artist: Katia Ren

"The Akan have used the lost-wax, or “cire-perdue”, casting method for centuries. Today’s beads and ornaments are still made by this ancient method in Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire. To make a bead or a pendant, the craftsman first makes a model from beeswax, usually forming it from thin wax threads. In the south east of Côte d’Ivoire, Akan craftsmen only use wax threads to make ornaments. The arrangement of these wax threads on beeswax models is what we call “Akan stripes.”

— AKÉBÉHI KPOLO

1- Baule breastplate solid casting, wax bead technique, All copyrights and credit go to the British Museum / 2- Diby Koffi & Koffi Yao Christophe, Bouaké, Côte d'Ivoire, 1988 | by Jean-Paul Barbier

LINES IS A MINIMALIST AND UNIQUE COLLECTION OF BODY ADORNMENTS

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OHIRI LINES - BEHIND THE SCENES VIDEO