Dallas, TX—September 24, 2023—The Dallas Museum of Art is proud to introduce its audiences to the intricate art of the negbe, a back apron created by upper-class Mangbetu women, in its latest exhibition, Backs in Fashion: Mangbetu Women’s Egbe. This exhibition investigates the artistic process, essential function and cultural role that egbe garments played in Mangbetu society historically, while also providing essential context about who the Mangbetu are as a contemporary culture. This showcase marks the debut of these works, acquired in 2021, at the DMA.
The Mangbetu peoples established powerful kingdoms during the 1800s in present-day Democratic Republic of the Congo. They were visited by European explorers and scientists, who published written accounts of the Mangbetu's opulent art and architecture, high standard of living, lavish royal courts and cultural practices, such as skull elongation. Although written from a limited European perspective and containing unsavory falsehoods, this spread of information increased global interest in Mangbetu culture. By the early 20th century, Mangbetu villages had become tourist attractions in colonial Belgian Congo. The Mangbetu people actively participated in this profitable venture by welcoming tourists to explore their architecture, enjoy ceremonial dances and hair styling demonstrations and buy artwork and household goods.
It is likely because of tourism that upper-class women who interacted with tourists created a new fashion for themselves. Egbe (singular, negbe), or back aprons, were made of plantain leaves and decorated with appliqué or stitched designs. This new garment met the needs of both comfort and modesty for Mangbetu women. Egbe provided a cushioned sitting pad, while also protecting the wearer's body from being exposed to the gaze of European men. Egbe, worn most frequently during the years of Belgian colonization (1908–1960), continue to be worn on ceremonial occasions.
“This exhibition is a wonderful opportunity for DMA audiences to be exposed to an artistic expression that is distinctly ‘woman’ in essence,” said Dr. Roslyn Walker, Senior Curator of the Arts of Africa, the Americas, and the Pacific and The Margaret McDermott Curator of African Art. “Egbe were made by women for women, and reveal a great deal about the integral role of women in the Mangbetu culture and economy.”
Egbe were crafted not only for the functions of modesty and comfort, but also for style. The skilled Mangbetu women made back aprons by layering plantain leaves, dyed with iron-rich fermented mud, onto an oval or kidney shaped pad and binding the edges. These dark-colored fibers contrast with the natural tan background or lighter-colored corn fibers to create elaborate geometric designs. The egbe often mimicked the Mangbetu halo hairstyle, an elaborate conical updo extending off the back of the head. Upper class and royal women wore their negbe with a nogetwe, or front apron, made of bark cloth, and left the back open to reveal the apron, which was hung on a belt worn around the woman’s waist. Three distinct styles of egbe emerged from the three regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo from which the Mangbetu rulers’ wives originated. Each of these three styles will be on view in Backs in Fashion in addition to contextual video.
Backs in Fashion: Mangbetu Women’s Ege is on view in the DMA’s Arts of Africa galleries through August 3, 2025, and is included in the Museum’s free general admission.
Support
Backs in Fashion: Mangbetu Women’s Egbe is organized by the Dallas Museum of Art. Free General Admission to the Dallas Museum of Art is made possible with generous support from the Robert Gerard Pollock Foundation. The Dallas Museum of Art is supported, in part, by the generosity of DMA Members and donors, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Texas Commission on the Arts and the citizens of Dallas through the City of Dallas Office of Arts and Culture.