0 of 2
An ever-changing design landscape brings with it interesting new talents, and during this year’s virtual SA Fashion Week, menswear was given a bigger spotlight during the transeasonal collections showing.
One of the main focuses this year was on innovative ideas around fashion that is more sustainable. Among those showing were young designers whose artistic flair took on gender-fluidity in creating their ready-to-wear collections.
Here are the three new talents worth keeping an eye on:
Hangwani Nengovhela
For Rubicon designer Hangwani Nengovhela, family was the spark that birthed her latest collection titled Myths of Origin. The collection, which recently showed at SA Fashion Week, was Nengovhela’s love letter to her mother and late grandfather. The latter, Professor Victor Ralushai, was a renowned academic who penned a report that Nengovhela named the collection after. The report helped to give Mapungubwe its World Heritage Site status.
I’ve used [the collection] to translate the history that took place in Mapungubwe. A lot of our history is verbal, so we need to start documenting it so that we don’t only study European ideas of how we came to where we are,” says Nengovhela.
The renowned designer also looked to her mother when considering a muse for the collection. “My mother had a firm hand bringing me up,” says Nengovhela. “Even the way she dressed me – I felt so inferior to her.”
In the latest collection, however, the Rubicon founder looked to her mother’s bold personality and flashy fashion sense that stands to this day.
The fuchsia and green tones in the collection were directly inspired by a dress her mother wore in one of the images the designer found while referencing her mother’s personal style. “I am in fashion because of her,” says Nengovhela, who also released a range of T-shirts with a picture of her mother carrying her as a baby.
As part of the growth of the brand, Nengovhela hopes to also expand her passion into homeware.
Thabo Kopele
Making a prominent debut, Thabo Kopele brought a heartfelt entrance into SA Fashion Week. Kopele initially had to leave fashion design school LISOF after failing to secure fees to continue his studies.
In 2018, after securing a bursary from the design school, he was then able to start his eponymous brand which focuses on minimalism and is heavily inspired by design architecture for the human body.
Shying away from the utilitarian aesthetic, Kopele is focused on creating premium ready-to-wear designs, refined with a touch of luxury.
Xavier Sadan
Johannesburg meets Cape Town through the design genius of Xavier Sadan’s founder, Michael Peter Reid, who is greatly inspired by the two worlds.
Two years ago, the designer was part of the Top 10 SA Fashion Week Student Competition finalists, also bagging a spot into the 21 Steps to Retail Edcon Design Innovation Challenge. With boxy cuts and daring fabric combinations, Xavier Sadan’s collections challenge ideas behind traditional masculinity which is infused with elements of femininity.
His take on sustainability was evident in his collection that utilised discarded materials that were up-cycled and given a new life. Plastics were smelted and reused in his 3D-printed buttons, a first for SA fashion design.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.