Yoruba Ritual & Ceremonial Beadwork

Artists:

Temujin Ekunfeo (Master Artist)
Cathleen Richardson-Bailey (Apprentice)

Description of the Art Form

The Yoruba, a large ethnic group from Southwest Nigeria, were a major group of people taken as slaves from West Africa to Cuba. Because of their large numbers, the Yoruba were able to recreate their religion, values, and language in the enslaved communities of the new world. Traditional Yoruba spirituality is an ancient form of honoring God and Orisa in his/her various forms. The Yoruba believe in one supreme God and consequential deities called Orisa who aid men and women in reaching their respective destinies. This tradition is also known as Lukumi and Santeria. The tradition has maintained its spiritual doctrines over the centuries and is practiced and respected nationally and internationally.

Crown Yewa: To adorn Orisa

Ceremonial beadwork is multi-layered in function, balance and form. Each Orisa has characteristics specific to their temperament, occupation and role in the Lukumi/Yoruba cosmology. For ceremonial pieces to be effective, these characteristics must be obvious, prominent, and conspicuous—so there is no doubt. Orisa must be pleased with completed objects.

Ileke Masso Oba: Multi strand beaded necklace used as adornment for shrine areas and worn by priests of the Orisa Oba on special ritual occasions.

Temujin Ekunfeo makes various beaded ritual Yoruba art pieces including ileke ikalorum (beads circling the neck), ileke maaso (beads tied in coils), ide Orisa (bracelets worn by initiates), as well as beaded crowns, machetes, and flywhisks. Beading is labor intensive; ileke masso are used to adorn Orisa and also to drape initiates during a seven day ceremony, and ileke masso can measure five or six feet and require several kilos of beads and hanks of thread to assemble just the base form.

Temujin Ekunfeo

Current Place of Residence: Pittsburgh, PA

Artist Statement

I began my studies in the making and beading of ritual objects in 1970, eight years before my initiation. Creating beads and beaded ritual objects is of paramount importance to the Yoruba community in that they are not just artifacts to be looked at and enjoyed for their beauty. A deeper meaning is evoked and the pieces are actively used in the practice of the religion. What does it mean to me to have been blessed with the ability to create spirit-filled ritual objects? This journey and obligation means more to me than I have words either written or spoken to express. I have had many great and profound teachers, as is the tradition. The source, however, comes form the greater Ones than me or any of my teachers. I think of this process as a gift—the ability to “channel” instruction from ancestors and Orisa.

Accomplishments/milestones

On November 25, 1978, Temujin Ekunfeo was initiated as a member of the priesthood of the Lukumi-Yoruba spiritual tradition by Christopher Oliana, one of the first two African-Americans initiated in Cuba and a respected priest of Orisa Aganju. His first piece of sacred bead work was produced in 1974 under the tutelage of Christopher Oliana, his mentor in the art of bead work while still a lay member of the Orisa worship community. This piece was an Odo or Garabato, a ceremonial “wand” dedicated to the Orisa Elegba and is marked by the use of red and black beads. His second piece of sacred beadwork, produced in or around 1976 or 1977, was a ceremonial beaded brass sword dedicated to the Orisa Ogun and is marked by the use of red, green, and black beads. In 1991, he became the student of Gilberto Martinez, priest of the Orisa Obatala.

Over the past fourteen years, Temujin Ekunfeo has produced various pieces of sacred beadwork including ileke ikalorum, single strand beaded necklaces worn by worshipers and priests of various Orisa; ileke masso, multi-strand beaded necklaces used as adornments for shrine areas and worn by priests of various Orisa on special ritual occasions; iruke, horse tail ceremonial “wands” dedicated to certain Orisa and marked by beads in the colors and number formations particular and sacred to that Orisa; ha, palm frond brooms that serve as ceremonial “wands,” and knives, swords, and crowns dedicated to certain Orisa and marked by beads in the colors particular and sacred to that Orisa. His techniques also incorporate wood, metal, and fiber work.

Cathleen Richardson-Bailey

Current Place of Residence: Pittsburgh, PA

Photo is of an Abebe (fan) for Osun completed during apprenticeship with Ekunfeo.

Artist Statement

Baba Temujin Ekunfeo and I share this same cultural tradition. I’ve been associated with Baba Temujin since 1994 when he presented me with the Orisa Elegba and Ogun. We are connected spiritually because his ashe (transformative power) went into the making of my Elegba and Ogun. He has been a constant teacher, lending his expertise in interpreting religious songs (both to ancestors and Orisa), and Odu (stories) that explain Orisa.

After receiving the Orisa, I began creating what is known as Yoruba art and alter pieces. Though not considered ritual objects, the pieces I created allowed me to expand my knowledge of beadwork and the certain Orisa characteristics available to me as an alejo (non-initiate). In 2001, I was initiated as a Yoruba priest of Obatala by Pedro Aquino (Ala Juri) in the Bronx, New York. It is mandatory to my individual charge as a Yoruba priest to learn ceremonial beadwork. This is how the Yoruba tradition works. Certain priests are charged with the responsibility to teach, so that religious doctrines, songs, rites, prayers, and the creation of ceremonial pieces can be carried on from one generation to the next.

I’m a self-taught writer and textile/multi-media artist. Most of my pieces incorporate beadwork, evoke spirit and reflect my place in the Yoruba community.

Accomplishments/milestones

Cathleen Richardson-Bailey’s work has recently appeared in a number of exhibitions and collections. The group exhibitions in which her work has appeared include:

2005 The Healing Power of Art, The University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Horizon Womancare Center, Hermitage, PA. Artist as Quiltmaker, Firelands Association for the Visual Arts, Oberlin, OH.
2004 Threads of Faith, The Gallery at the American Bible Society, New York, NY (traveling exhibition).
2003 Quilters and Preservers of Western Pennsylvania, Senator John Heinz Pittsburgh Regional History Center, in association with the Smithsonian Institution, Pittsburgh, PA. Finding Voice, Creating Vision, National Civil Rights Museum, Memphis, TN.
1999-2002 The Spirit of the Cloth: African American Quilts Today, American Craft Museum, NY. (Traveling Exhibition: Mint Museum of Craft and Design, Charlotte, NC; Renwick Gallery of American Art, Washington, D.C.; Samuel P. Harn Museum of Art, Gainesville, FL; Evansville Museum, Evansville, IN; Blaffer Gallery, Houston, TX).
2001 Threads of Freedom: The Underground Railroad Story in Quilts, Firelands Association for the Visual Arts and Oberlin Historical and Improvement Organization, Oberlin, OH.
2001 Threads Unraveled—Stories Revealed, NBC Gallery, New York; General Electric Gallery, Connecticut; University of Michigan Women’s Center.
2000 A Gathering of Women; A Healing Place; 1000 Expressions of Life, The Abington Art Center, Jenkintown, PA; The Free Library of Pennsylvania, Central Library Logan Square, Philadelphia, PA; and the Paul Robeson Gallery of Pennsylvania State University, University Park. African Americana, The African American Art & Cultural Appreciation Council, New Rochelle, NY. Fiberart Regional Focus 99, The Society for Contemporary Crafts, Mellon Bank Satellite Gallery and Northland Public Library Gallery, Pittsburgh, PA. Three Rivers Arts Festival—Juried Visual Arts Exhibition, Pittsburgh, PA.
1997 Threads of Experience, Seton Hill College, Greensburg, PA. Public collections of her work include: Silver Lake Senior Care Facility, Pittsburgh, PA. Big Grandma’s Fan.
2003 Nurture Clubs, The Healing Space, Pittsburgh, PA. Aretha’s Voice, My Soul Serenade.
2002 Children’s Defense Fund, Langston Hughes Library, Former Alex Haley Farm, Clinton, TN. The Jazz Poet. Housing Authority, City of Pittsburgh. A Vine and Leaves Falling Over a Crooked Fence.