Got a small business? Want to see it grow?
Cost Effective Advertising List with JosephSt Business Directory.
AWEC has embarked on a $5 marathon to assist the funding of our programs. if it can be done, it's up to us! Click here for details.
afro style mag | design school of africa
ere we are again in the midst of an inspiring season and approaching yet another. Many designers looked to the African continent for inspiration for Spring/Summer 2010. We have definitely seen a turn in direction for Fall/Winter 2010 in terms of silhouettes and color palettes but, as the saying states, some things never change. Fall/Winter 2010 also has threads of Africa woven throughout its collections and from what I can see there are specific regions and tribal references to take note of.
First is the reference to ancient Kemet (Egypt), in which case I want to highlight one designer in specific. UK-based Holly Fulton always wows with enticing, focused, bold graphics on simple, shapeless dresses, tops, and bottoms.
For F/W 10
Holly referenced hieroglyphics and symbol IC shapes of the Kemetic ancestors and applied them to short and long shift dresses, boxy separates, and neckwear. The results are stunning, showing just how powerful these ancient writings are symbols still are. Fulton also used Turquoise and Gold as her major pop colors in the almost all Black and White palette. These two naturally-derived colors are also two of the main colors seen throughout Kemetic design and communication.
Next we have a common theme amongst the designer’s collections, the reference to West Africa. Not a season goes by without a designer using prints and patterns directly from Nigerian or Ghanaian wax prints; and I can’t tell you the last time I didn’t see a traditional head wrap on the runway. These colors, shapes, and textures are irresistible!
Promostyl, a prominent forecasting firm based in France, forecasts that 2011 will see the revival of Poppy Red and Electric Blue, two of the major colors used in West African design.
Legendary designer Jean Paul Gaultier did not beat around the bush. He sent models in various looks down the runway with traditional West African head wraps of fabric printed with Red, Blue, and Yellow graphic prints. It’s amazing how modern an African head wrap looks when paired with high fashion. It helps one to see how avante garde the shapes of the head wraps possess. Jean Paul Gaultier must have seen this vision, enough so to feature them on almost every mode.
One of my favorite designers for F/W 10, Suno, applied it’s West and South African inspiration with perfection. There is nothing more that a fashionista needs then the mix-and-match separates from this collection.
Suno combined miniskirts, blazers, blouses, dresses, and even peplum suits to create some of the freshest looks of the season. Each print reminds me of combining the top from one 2-piece Ghanaian outfit with a skirt from another Nigerian outfit.
Even more, Suno chose a softer color palette that uses Pink, Purple, and Yellow in addition to the expected Red and Blue.
This collection is the reinvention of bold, proud pieces, reminiscent of the days of the late great Fela Kuti.
Last but certainly not least is the ever popular design teachers, the Massai tribe of Kenya. The Maasai have created their very own way of dressing, designing, beadwork, adornments and so much more. Animal skins and hides were replaced in the 1960’s by cotton fabrics primarily in Red, Blue, checkered and plaid, and floral print shuka (sheets). These shuka are layered one over the other, creating a beautiful draping effect that is so unique to this tribe. Red and Blue fabrics and prints are extremely common.
Both Missoni and Wunderkind’s draped knits over one shoulder seem like a blatant attempt to emulate the silhouettes of the Maasai tribe and they’ve done so very well. Missoni, a legend in knits and Wunderkind, a purveyor of Avante Garde-fem must have know the beauty of draping that could be applied to lightweight knits as they had seen in their research of the Maasai people (There is no doubt in my mind that there was Maasai research going on here).
Until the next season of shows, notice yourself how often you catch a glimpse of African inspiration n everyday life, in design and fashion especially. I hope that if you do so you do so with appreciation for the natural abilities our African ancestors had to create designs, symbols, and art so forward-thinking and boldly colorful and expressive that they’ve remained on this planet for al to enjoy in the centuries to come. I am a personal fan of African clothing, aesthetics, and culture and the runways never cease to amaze me. From Kemet to Ghana to South Africa to Kenya, there is enough inspiration to go around.
ere we are again in the midst of an inspiring season and approaching yet another. Many designers looked to the African continent for inspiration for Spring/Summer 2010. We have definitely seen a turn in direction for Fall/Winter 2010 in terms of silhouettes and color palettes but, as the saying states, some things never change. Fall/Winter 2010 also has threads of Africa woven throughout its collections and from what I can see there are specific regions and tribal references to take note of.
First is the reference to ancient Kemet (Egypt), in which case I want to highlight one designer in specific. UK-based Holly Fulton always wows with enticing, focused, bold graphics on simple, shapeless dresses, tops, and bottoms.
For F/W 10
Holly referenced hieroglyphics and symbol IC shapes of the Kemetic ancestors and applied them to short and long shift dresses, boxy separates, and neckwear. The results are stunning, showing just how powerful these ancient writings are symbols still are. Fulton also used Turquoise and Gold as her major pop colors in the almost all Black and White palette. These two naturally-derived colors are also two of the main colors seen throughout Kemetic design and communication.
