African Fashion, Art, Design & Culture

African Fashion And Designers

Azzedine Alaïa, special creation, 1996. Bodice and belt in printed foal hide and horsehair, installation view at the Azzedine Alaïa and Africa exhibition, Paris

The Africa Azzedine Alaïa Carried

Fashion FLY03140

The Money Is the Wrong Shape

Akinola Lasekan's 1957 oil portrait of Chief Justus D. Akeredolu in a red striped aṣọ-òkè agbada, patterned fila cap and coral beads

Aṣọ-Òkè: The Cloth We Inherit

Diarra Bousso Builds Fashion From Mathematics, Technology, and Craft

If This. Then That: World Cup Edition graphic pairing the Loewe x Spain travel wardrobe with Ibrahim Fernandez's Côte d'Ivoire ceremonial look, shown side by side under the Guzangs banner.

If This. Then That: World Cup Edition — Dressing the Team — Loewe → Ibrahim Fernandez

Attendees and exhibitors at Africa Sourcing & Fashion Week (ASFW) Dakar 2026, the continental trade fair on textile sourcing and fashion industrialisation

Africa Grows the Cotton. A Dakar Gathering Asks Who Profits.

Fashion INAUGURATION057 2

Kente and the Politics of Being Read

Five Black women models walk a runway in a curved white-walled venue, wearing handwoven heritage textiles tailored as contemporary luxury garments. The model in the foreground wears a pink and red kente coat with a long fringed skirt and metallic boots. Beside her, a model in a grey and black patchwork coat with appliqué motifs. Behind them, three more models in striped, geometric, and embellished handwoven pieces. Lagos runway lighting, audience visible at the edges.

After the Applause: Heritage Textiles and the Economics of the Runway Moment

BAKUSORAYA Coton Brut — final-collection portrait, Porto-Novo.

At BAKUS ORAYA, Cotton in Its Final State

Designer Huguette Tchiapi, photographed in London.

Huguette Tchiapi’s Debut Begins in Yaoundé

Tia Adeola From Lagos With Love editorial — Nigerian fashion designers reshaping femininity, photographed by Danielle Mbonu

Nigerian Women Are Dressing Against the Code

A 20th-century Bògòlanfini tunic from Tenenkou, Mali, with cream geometric motifs on a dark mud-dyed ground, fringed sleeves, and bell tassels, photographed against a black background. Collection of the Minneapolis Institute of Art.

Understanding Bògòlanfini: The Malian Textile Written in Mud and Cotton

Antonia Julies wears a Chelsea Jean Lamm garment with Ashley Elizabeth Lamm collage detailing in a verdant garden, photographed by Nina Zimolong.

What the Met’s 2026 Theme Means in an African Context, and the Designers Shaping the Narrative

Funky Cool Medina founder Fahd Al Marsaoui seated on a sofa in green geometric pants and blue cap against green zellige tiles in Marrakech

Funky Fahd Will See You Now

Detail shot of a handwoven Léppi textile, displaying the deep indigo dye and narrow-strip cotton weaving traditional to the Fouta-Djalon region.

Guinea: A Textile Civilization in Four Systems

Model wearing a brown tiered skirt and intricate multi-layered clay bead statement necklace from Hertunba's Akaoru collection, standing among traditional terracotta pots.

Hertunba’s ‘Akaoru’ Collection Is a Lesson in What Craftsmanship Actually Costs

Side-by-side comparison of two similar dark brown slip-on shoes. The left side features Lemaire and the right side features Kkerelé.

If This. Then That: Shoes — Lemaire → Kkerelé

Amayi Archive One: model in hand-painted abstract print top against blue brushstroke backdrop, Joanna Masiyiwa debut collection

Joanna Masiyiwa Has Only Photographs. Amayi Is the Rest.

Mariama Camara wearing Guinean indigo tie-dye dress crossing a New York City street

Material Literacy: The Knowledge in Cloth

Dancers in colorful smoke at night at a rave party.

How to Dress for a Rave (Across African Cities)

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