Beyond the White Lines. Africa, Fashion, and the U.S. Open
The first tennis clubs in Africa were built like fortresses. Behind their gates in Lagos, Johannesburg, Nairobi, and Casablanca, colonists played in pressed whites while Africans raked clay, carried balls, or stood outside the fence. The game was there but not for them. That shadow framed a remark by South African designer Wanda Lephoto […]
Inside the Rise of Africa’s Skateboarding Culture
In Kampala, in a neighborhood called Kitintale, a half-pipe rises from the red earth. It is not polished concrete poured by a city planner or a glossy installation by a global sports brand. It is a handmade monument, built nearly twenty years ago by Jackson Mubiru, who believed Uganda’s children needed a place to […]
Labor Day 2025: William Matlala’s Lens on Labour and Documenting the Dignity of Black Workers in South Africa
When William Matlala picked up his mother’s camera in the early 1980s, he began what would become one of South Africa’s most quietly powerful photographic projects: a visually dense archive of factory floors, miners, families, and community life that refused the narrow images of Black existence under apartheid. Even after decades, his work continues to […]
Africa Textile Talks 2025: Weaving Circularity, Wool, and Culture Into the Future of Fashion
“The Cape once dressed a nation. Now it’s being dressed by the rest of the world.” — Ilse Menck, Menck Clothing That line, delivered in Cape Town, set the tone for Africa Textile Talks 2025 (ATT). Organised by sustainability platform Twyg, ATT has grown into one of the continent’s most important gatherings on fashion, textiles, […]
Sindiso Khumalo Debuts Flagship Store in Cape Town as a Love Letter to African Craft
There are many facets to Sindiso Khumalo: She is, foremost, a designer whose textiles are instantly recognizable for their bold colors and hand-drawn prints. She is a storyteller who weaves African and Black history into contemporary fashion, creating a compelling bridge between different eras of design. Beyond that, she is an architect by training, an […]
Continental Swagger: African Fashion Design in the 21st Century – Post-Panel Reflections
Yesterday’s Continental Swagger panel, presented by The Met’s Costume Institute, brought together three uncompromising voices — Adeju Thompson (Lagos Space Programme, Nigeria), Wanda Lephoto (South Africa), and Imane Ayissi (Cameroon/France) for an unflinching, deeply personal conversation on heritage, innovation, and the politics of where a designer chooses to stand. Moderated by Monica L. Miller, Guest […]
TWYG Africa Textile Talks 2025: Where Africa’s Textile Legacy Fuels Industry Change
This July, Cape Town will host a major gathering focused on the future of textiles in Africa. From 28 July to 1 August 2025, Africa Textile Talks returns with a three-day summit and a five-day exhibition at the V&A Waterfront. Set between Workshop17 and Church House, the event will bring together designers, researchers, artisans, policymakers, […]
Where Meaning Meets Material: Dahomey Paris and the Soul of Luxury
The first time I spoke with Farid Hounkponou, I realized this wasn’t going to be a regular chat about fashion. He didn’t start by talking about trends or collections. Instead, he talked about people, stories, and why every piece of clothing should mean something. “Dahomey Paris brings together the soul of African tradition and the […]
Legacy African Fashion Houses That Defined the Continent’s Style Future
Fashion across the continent has always been rooted in craftsmanship, talent, and boundless creativity—and nowhere is that more evident than in the pioneering legacy houses that rose to prominence from the 1980s onward. These houses wove an African narrative that resisted reductive stereotypes and demanded global recognition for its innovation and cultural depth. Their ateliers […]
Thobeka Mbane Is Styling for Liberation, Not Just Looks
In the town of Mthatha, nestled in South Africa’s Eastern Cape, a young girl was falling in love — not with a person, but with possibility. Thobeka Mbane didn’t yet know that fashion could be a language, a tool, even a form of resistance. All she knew was how she felt watching her mother get […]