I’ve been in London the last week, doing work, visiting my hometown, and seeing friends, while also trying to catch as many exhibitions as possible. The other morning I headed to the V & A and saw ‘Africa Fashion,’ an exhibition curated by Dr Christine Checinska that looks at fashion across Africa from the independence era of the 1950s to “the 1990s, when fashion, music and the visual arts looked towards self-rule with an unforgettable independence of spirit. This continues in the work of Africa's contemporary creatives as the story unfolds.”
“The 'Africa' we reference has multiple histories, cultures and creative expressions, at times interrelated, at times contradictory. It is shaped by a new pan-Africanism, a unity that embraces difference informed by a continental sensibility and a cosmopolitanism that includes rather than excludes… There are many ways to be fashionable and African. The story we tell is one of fashion as a self-defining artform, encompassing attitude, gesture, movement - style… Every cut, dine, drape and stitch, each fabric and fibre, reveals a tale of agency and abundance from myriad African perspectives.”
It is a large exhibition, encompassing the two-floor exhibition space at the center of the circular historical fashion gallery. Celebrating “the vitality and innovation of a selection of fashion creatives from over 20 countries,” downstairs is devoted to the history of fashion since around 1960 with windows discussing the politics of cloth, the African Cultural Renaissance, and a room highlighting the importance of portrait studios. Upstairs offers “a close-up look at the new generation of ground-breaking designers, collectives, stylists and fashion photographers working in Africa today,” with platforms chartering different approaches to African design, from minimalism to Afrotopia.
Among the rooms downstairs is the Vanguard section, which profiles five of the first African designers to gain attention across the continent and the world. Of all the spaces, I found these five vitrines the most enlightening and interesting—not just introducing me to some designers I didn’t know, but also illustrating how they incorporated African textiles and techniques into their work while also dialoguing with western fashion types. Below I have shared with you each designer—Shade Thomas-Fahm, Chris Seydou, Kofi Ansah, Alphadi, and Naïma Bennis; the clothing images were all taken by me at the show, with the text all written by Chesinska. The exhibition closes on April 16th—if you are in London before then, I highly suggest visiting as there is far more to see than what I cover here. Personally, looking at these clothes and reading these designers’ stories made me want to learn much more; hopefully, their work unleashes some inspiration in you too.
“There has always been a vibrant and constantly innovating fashion system in Africa. The mid-20th century saw a new shift of direction as designers started to work further afield, building brands and selling designs locally, nationally and internationally. Their names stitched into their garments, emblazoned on shop fronts and printed in newspapers, announced the emergence of the hero name-designer. Alongside this, local tailors and seamstresses, together with home dressmakers, continued to cater for most people's fashion needs, innovating and adapting as they always had done. The Continent was alight with creativity.”
A WOMAN OF INDEPENDENCE: NAÏMA BENNIS
Born in Casablanca in 1940, Naïma Bennis was one of several pioneering Moroccan women who, filled with the spirit of independence, was determined to build a business in fashion. She established her first boutique in 1966 in the recently opened Hilton Hotel in Rabat, Morocco, and later opened three more boutiques selling clothes, jewellery, and perfume. Bennis catered to the international jet-set clientele of the hotel as well as local customers. Her atelier was just behind the shop, where she worked with a team of craftspeople to realise her designs.
Elegant evening cloaks were one of Bennis's signature creations. Inspired by the cut and shape of the male bernous (cloak), Bennis designed the evening cape to be worn over a stylish qeftan (kaftan) or a gown. Made in a soft velvet with gold passementerie, this was the ultimate luxury design, created to appeal to the elite cosmopolitan woman of 1960s and '70s Morocco.
Bennis's creations fused multiple design traditions, mixing Moroccan and European aesthetics, old and new. She often paired Moroccan silhouettes with French couture fabrics for lightweight, contemporary styles perfect for women in the city. Bennis also worked with characteristically Moroccan materials in unconventional ways. She was known to use the fine woollen weave bziwi, more traditionally used for menswear, to create elegant designs for women.
THE 'ENFANT TERRIBLE" OF GHANAIAN FASHION: KOFI ANSAH
Kofi Ansah propelled Ghana onto the global fashion stage. Raised by an artistic family in Nkrumah's post-independence Ghana, Ansah considered himself a pan-Africanist, and had a global, future-focused view which guided his work. He first made headlines upon his graduation from London's Chelsea School of Art when he created a beaded top for Anne, Princess Royal. He started his own brand in 1981, after spending time working for prominent London designers, finessing his craft. Having established himself in the European fashion scene, Ansah returned to Ghana in 1992 to form Artdress, his design and creative concept company.
Ansah found inspiration all around him, and this robe epitomises his cross-cultural. influences. Its silhouette shows traces of the Japanese kimono, the judge's robe and the West African agbada robe. Designed as part of his Blue Zone collection, the blue tie-dyed cloth is a tribute to the Yoruba &dire, updated with a twist by reversing out the colours on the arms.
“West isn't always best... Inspiration is all around you” - Ryan Ansah quoting his father Kofi Ansah, 2021
Ansah launched his first Blue Zone collection in 1988 with a show at the Dorchester Hotel, London, organised by the Ivory Coast Embassy. The show included everything from jackets and bustlers to dresses and shoes, all in the collection's signature patterned denim. The collection was immediately popular, and Ansah revisited Blue Zone multiple times in his career.
Eveningwear was an important part of Ansah's repertoire. His pieces were both elegant and playful. While in London, his creations were stocked in boutiques across Knightsbridge, including Rich Bitch on Marylebone High Street. Testament to Ansah's skill and the high-quality workmanship, they commanded high prices, from £400 for a modest cocktail dress (about £1200 today) to £1000—£2000 for an evening gown (about £3000—£6000 today).
Kente cloth is made by Ashanti and Ewe weavers and is a treasured and prestigious cloth in Ghana. Ansah used kente in his designs from early on in his career but was keen to employ this historic cloth in a non-traditional way. He introduced new colours and paired it with other fabrics like lace to create bold tailored silhouettes.
'NIGERIA'S FIRST FASHION DESIGNER': SHADE THOMAS-FAHM
Shade Thomas-Fahm studied fashion at St Martin's School of Art (now Central Saint Martins) in London, having originally moved to England in 1953 to train as a nurse. She returned home to Lagos in 1960, the year of Nigeria's independence, and quickly established her own boutique, Maison Shade. Championing Nigerian fabrics and silhouettes, Thomas-Fahm designed for the cosmopolitan, working woman. Her boutique swiftly became the go-to place for stylish people in Lagos and she counted diplomats and royalty among her regular customers.
A loyal customer of Maison Shade, Lalage Bown, a professor at Ibadan University in Nigeria, bought this dress to wear to receive her OBE at Buckingham Palace. While the silhouette and lurex embroidery are characteristic of Thomas-Fahm's aesthetic, she made the dress in heavy red velvet to help combat the cold English weather.
Thomas-Fahm is a passionate advocate of Nigerian fabrics, often using aso-ake, adire, akwete and okene in her designs. This coat is made from okene cloth. Named after the Nigerian city of Okene, it is traditionally made by women. Woven by hand, it takes around three weeks to produce five yards of fabric.
Thomas-Fahm often re-imagined traditional. Nigerian styles for the modern woman. She created a pre-tied gele (headwrap) to make getting dressed easier, and added a zipper to the iro. Originally a wrapped garment, the new style of iro allowed cosmopolitan women to move around with ease.
Alongside her bespoke, made-to-measure pieces, Thomas-Fahm had several. popular ready-to-wear lines stocked both at her boutiques and by other retailers, including Kingsway Stores in Lagos. She regularly travelled abroad to attract international buyers, including in December 1972, when she went to New York and held a series of promotional Christmas events.
A BRIDGE BETWEEN CULTURES: CHRIS SEYDOU
Chris Seydou loved fashion from an early age and learnt his trade from his mother, a seamstress in Kati, Mali. After completing a tailoring apprenticeship, he opened his first boutique in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso, in 1967. A life-long fan of French fashion, he moved to Paris in the early 1970s where he worked for almost twenty years, first at French fashion houses, then at his own studio. Seydou was a pioneer in promoting African fashions on a global stage. His work attracted an international clientele and he routinely travelled between Paris, Bamako and Abidjan, eventually returning to Bamako, Mali in 1990.
For Seydou, Paris was a place of excitement and innovation. The historic fashion houses and the bustling cafes like the Café de Flore provided constant stimulation, sparking his creativity. Taking inspiration from the city, he worked with a range of different materials, from shiny lurex to sophisticated silk, creating stylish day pieces and elegant eveningwear.
Seydou's work with bògòlanfini flourished in the 1990s when he returned to Mali. Traditionally used uncut for wrapped garments, his new tailored designs gained widespread acclaim. He made this suit for Emmanuelle Courreges, a family friend and now fashion editor and author, to wear for her 18th birthday. A similar Seydou design is captured in Nabil Zorkot's striking photograph, taken in Grand-Bassam, Cote d'Ivoire.
Traditionally made by the Bamana, bògòlanfini is a cotton or wool cloth, dyed with fermented mud. Seydou brought bògòlanfini to the runway. Familiar with the cloth from his childhood in Kati, Mali, he started using it in his work in the mid 1970s. The cloth has deep cultural significance. In respect of this, Seydou created his own designs, adapting traditional patterns for popular use. The trouser suit here shows one of Seydou's innovations, translating a simplified bògòlanfini pattern into an appliqué design.
'THE MAGICIAN OF THE DESERT': ALPHADI
Born in Timbuktu, Mali, on the eve of independence, Alphadi sees fashion as a vehicle for unity and prosperity. His designs showcase and celebrate the beauty of the African continent, its rich histories and cultures. Apprenticed to master couturier Mister Ouseman Chirfi between the ages of seven and twelve, he learnt fashion design at an early age. He later studied at the Atelier Chardon Savard, Paris. With global ambition, he has opened boutiques all over the world, including in Casablanca, New York, Accra, and locations in Martinique and Spain
Alphadi draws on cultures and design practices from across the continent in his work. Kuba cloth is a common feature in his collections. Originating from the ancient Kuba kingdom of central Africa, it is made from woven raffia. The intricate decoration is achieved through cut-pile embroidery. Designs are stitched onto the cloth and then raffia fibre is drawn through with a needle and snipped with a knife to make a dense pile, creating a plush, velvet-like effect.
Alphadi created this dress as an homage to Tuareg jewellers and their historic metalwork practices. Inspired by the strength of women, the metal breastplate represents the woman as a warrior, the harsh metal contrasting with a billowing layer of cotton African-print cloth.
“It was important for me to show the beauty of the African continent... [to] show the diversity of our cultures and the strong history of each of them... I want to be able to represent them all but it will take a couple of lives. One continent, 54 countries... Every African has a different story to tell.”
Alphadi uses a strip of Tera-Tera cloth on the jacket to update this classic skirt suit. A handwoven fabric traditionally made in Tera, Niger, this vibrant cloth is used historically to cover brides on their wedding day. Alphadi references this history, creating a design to represent a strong woman, fully independent and dynamic, pursuing her dreams.
From hats to waistcoats, Alphadi is regularly seen wearing his own designs. He uses his wardrobe as a vehicle to tell multiple and layered stories about African cultures, histories and fashions on a global stage. Hats are a particularly favoured accessory, and he often wears a shallow, rounded hat decorated with embroidery. This style is popular in many regions in Africa, known variously as the hula, filo or kofi.