Dazzling: Africa Fashion @ V&A, London
A real wow factor exhibition — I learnt so much about regional textiles, how they were used and how they continue to be used and adapted by contemporary designers. There was also a real sweep of designers and fashions from all over the continent — North Africa, Kenya, Rwanda, Senegal and Ghana - not to mention a celebration of the proud tradition of cloth producing factories in Tanzania. There was so much wow factor on display and learning, not to mention fun! I would have liked a map or two to show where different traditions were located (and maybe the overlap too).
There was Kente cloth modernised and personalised for London wedding clothing, (Kofi Ansah, for Ashley Shaw-Scott Adjaye and David Adjaye).
I learnt that tie dye was an African tradition through the beautiful indigo Adire styles. Raffia made into cloth was a wonder (such as Kuba)! not to mention the appealing symbolism of Ankara prints — where you literally can wear your heart on your sleeve or display your learning. It’s very beautiful and unique symbolism. I’ve only mentioned a few here — the more I read, the more I want to know — V&A · Cloth Of A Continent: Africa Fashion (vam.ac.uk)
Another really interesting point was the presentation — there was an amazing necklace mostly made of salt!
Garments were displayed to create beautiful shadows (sometimes unintentional light sabre displays!) and also avoided bottlenecks — you literally could look really clearly at something and admire the artistry. Cheeky comment aside, the colour and dazzle of bags and jewellery, playing with shape and form in extraordinary ways was breathtaking.
But at the same time, the beading, the cut outs, the bonnets, the stance, the space taking! Tremendous. The confidence!
I would have liked either letters or numbers where several items where displayed because it was hard to work out what was what sometimes — but this is a minor quibble. It was vibrant — and the display allowed films to be watched and access to the displays to happen — at the same time. Another interesting point was the joy of photographic studios — where you could dream big and be who you wanted to be, literally striking a pose, as well as family photographs which promoted their wearers traditions and style with pride (such as at the birth of a granddaughter).
This wonderful piece by Mbeuk Idourrou I wanted to bring home (and wear to work!)
The shapes and styles were wonderful, making the most of the traditions and textiles they worked with, and showing the movement.
Whilst my camera just wanted to capture glaring light, the structure and sophistication of these business garments which literally mean business cannot be denied:
Men’s fashions could have had a stronger presence within the exhibition overall as the foci was very much women and gender fluidity. Though how dapper this blue dashiki by Moshions is. The pleating!
V&A · Inside The Africa Fashion Exhibition (vam.ac.uk)
@ Images are used purely for illustrative purposes and taken from the Victoria and Albert Africa Fashion exhibition to illustrate points made about the wonderful items on display. Author’s own photos are also used to illustrate points alone and celebrate the great designs on display — excuse the glare, my camera loves to capture a sharp light! April 2023
