While Sandton has been blinged out by the Audi Jo’burg Fashion Week, South Africa’s glamazons move to the beautiful setting of MuseuMAfricA for the Sanlam South Africa Fashion Week’s winter collections on March 14 and 15. In the run-up to the event, three designers showing their work offer a glimpse of what to expect on the Newtown catwalks.
Diana Lerato George
For Swazi-born Diana Lerato George, it is texture that usually inspires the creation of her garments. This is perhaps no surprise given her background. George studied textile design at the Chelsea College of Art and Design in London and specialised in knitwear. As such she says her new collection will use a mix of satins, chiffons and, of course, chunky knits.
”I may see a pattern or a surface and whether it’s smooth or rough I try to incorporate that into the fabric,” she says of her creative process.
George loves colour, but this collection, she says, is a departure from her usual work with black being its primary colour, so to speak. She is, however, working with an accessories designer whose pieces will provide glimmers of bright colour.
After studying in London, she returned to South Africa and began the process of entering the local industry. Her label is entitled Mon Moir.
One of the toughest aspects of establishing herself was ”finding the right people to guide you”, she says. And then, of course, the next challenge was getting people to buy her products.
George has been through the mill, having opened and then closed her own store in Cape Town and she is now supplying Young Designers Emporium (YDE).
Although closing the store was sad, George looks back on the experience as a positive one. ”I could be as creative as I wanted to,” she says.
While she is an African designer and has been influenced to an extent by that background, this collection, she says, has moved away from that. It has a more European aesthetic she says: ”It’s a little bit out there.”
Amanda Laird Cherry
Amanda Laird Cherry, a Durban designer, is known for the ease with which she weaves cultural and historical significance into her garments and this winter collection will be no different. In part her range will reflect a meeting of the traditional Western dress suit and mblaselo pants worn by migrant workers.
In a way, she says, this style was, about personalising a piece of Western dress, by appliquéing patchwork and bright detail on to formal Western clothing and is still seen today. She says that there is also an ”almost subliminal or subconscious” allusion to how South Africans dress for courts of law.
It is, however, a ”positive look at law” she says, with the emphasis on it as fair and just and something that must be upheld. The collection will see a mixture of, among other fabrics, silks, suiting, sateen and cotton voiles.
”It’s about carrying our history with us but moving forward into a global market and becoming more professional and competitive,” she says of the range.
Laird Cherry, whose work has been featured in Time magazine, Wallpaper and British Vogue, is also the co-owner of retailer The Space. Her label has also been shown in Liberty’s of London. Despite her success she regularly takes part in shows because she believes they offer her the opportunity to focus.
”It forces me to focus on cohesiveness and on creating something fresh,” she explains. Shows enable her to be ”ordered and presented ” she says. ”It’s [also] a natural marketing tool for me and through the shows I have connected to the most incredible people.”
Terrence Bray
Durban-based designer Terrence Bray is a regular at Sanlam South African Fashion Week (SSAFW). Bray has been on the local fashion scene for about 10 years, and is best known for his menswear ranges, although he does design womenswear, as well as swimwear for both sexes.
”I am experimenting with quite classic colours, browns, navies, blacks, but with a twist,” he says from his studio in Durban. Very strong accent colours, offset against these classic tones will create that ”twist” he says. The collection looks to the Eighties heyday of the corporate suit with ”a strong emphasis on tailoring”.
”The silhouettes are masculine, the look very tailored,” says Bray. Everything will be made using natural fibres however, and the collection will be a celebration of good clothes, avoiding gimmickry, he says. His womenswear will parallel the menswear collection in feel and attitude.
Bray who manufactures all his work locally believes that the industry could benefit from greater skills development. He says it has been difficult to find employees who understand the needs and requirements of the industry — the time, the effort and the pressure required to produce excellent clothes. To produce his lines he has had to plan carefully.
”Our manufacture is local and we gear our ranges towards what our workforce can produce and don’t overextend it,” he says.
While South Africa is flooded with foreign goods, and most local consumers do not distinguish between a cheap Chinese import and a South African piece, Bray believes his clients see further than this.
”We are offering a process; it’s more than just a garment and people are buying into that process. It’s not just clothing,” he says.
THE DETAILS
The Sanlam South Africa Fashion Week Autumn/Winter 08 Collections takes place at MuseuMAfricA in Newtown, Johannesburg, on March 14 and 15. The event is open to the public and tickets are available from Ticket Connection. Single-show packages and full-day or half-day packages for the arts and culture seminar are available. Info: www.sanlamfashionweek.co.za or Tel: 011 442 7812
