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Zulu Beadwork: Talking with Beads
Hlengiwe Dube, Zulu Beadwork Talk with Beads, AfricaDirect Inc., 2009, 112 pages. illustrations and photographs, paperback. shrinkwrapped. Price includes media mail shipping within the US, international or expedited shipping will incur additional charges.
Hlengiwe Dube is one of South Africa’s most accomplished bead artists, and possibly the greatest living expert on Zulu bead-work. Her work with the African Craft Center (Durban, South Africa) brings the craftwork from remote villages, such as those in KwaZulu-Natal to interested and money carrying consumers. This book is one of the only studies of African art written by an African artist. It draws from her personal experiences and generational stories – describing the messages (unspoken words) told by each color and each color combination of beads.