Understanding Bògòlanfini: The Malian Textile Written in Mud and Cotton
Bògòlanfini, the mud cloth of Mali, is one of Africa’s oldest living textile traditions. Ugonna-Ora Owoh traces its science, symbolism, and migration — from Bamana villages and the Mali Empire to Chris Seydou’s Paris ateliers and Awa Meïté’s contemporary Bamako-based practice.
The Sustainability Checklist: African Fashion in the Age of Green Demands
While African fashion practices have long been inherently sustainable, designers are now navigating a global system where sustainability means compliance
Kakinbow Is Aboubacarim Ndaw’s Second Act—And It Sounds Like a Revolution
In Ouakam, a seaside neighborhood in Dakar where the Atlantic wind carries stories from centuries past, a quiet revolution is unfolding. Not in protests or politics—but in fabric, form, and rhythm. Tucked into a side street, far from the chaos of car horns and vendors, sits a boutique with no neon signs, no loud displays—just […]
1-54 New York 2025: African Artists Reshape the Narrative
Over the past decade, 1-54 Contemporary African Art Fair has evolved from a niche satellite event into a mainstay of the international art circuit. This year marked its tenth anniversary in New York, as the fair returned with its most ambitious edition yet, opening from May 8 – 11 at the Halo on 28 Liberty […]
The Power of the Collective: Artisans Behind the Runway
In Ghana’s Bonwire village, kente weavers thread vibrant narratives into silk-cotton cloth. In Ethiopia’s Amhara region, women’s cooperatives spin cotton into minimalist elegance. In South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal, Zulu beadworkers craft intricate patterns. In Mali’s Bamako region, indigo dyers create mud-dyed bogolanfini. In Kenya’s Kitui County, the Shalom Pride community weaves raffia into sustainable basket bags. […]
The Resurgence of African Menswear Global Dialogue
In Kumasi’s Bonwire, loomers weave kente into vests that hum with royal lineage. In Cape Town’s ateliers, Xhosa-inspired capes ripple, their beads chanting warrior tales. From Lagos to Addis Ababa, African menswear is shredding colonial threads—stiff suits, muted ties—and stitching a vibrant, homegrown identity. Mudcloth jackets pulse with Mali’s ancient glyphs; ankara blazers blaze with […]
Mali Fashion Empire Celebrates Cotton Craftsmanship and African Heritage
In a captivating celebration of African heritage and craftsmanship, Mali Fashion Empire recently hosted a mesmerizing workshop shoot that delved deep into the realms of cotton processing and traditional textile techniques. Directed by the visionary Senegalese artist Djibril DRAME, the event, themed ‘Mother Queen,’ unfolded against the backdrop of the Nialan textile workshop in Bamako, […]