On Friday, the American Church in Paris was the backdrop for a renaissance of sorts.
Following some last-minute drama courtesy of the Frankfurt airport customs authorities, Maxhosa Africa made it to PFW with a spring lineup that transposed history, symbolism, and craft techniques like beading into light, modern silhouettes.
Backstage before the show, creative director Laduma Ngxokolo said he was inspired by traditional artifacts and motifs from his native Xhosa culture, which produces some of the most magnificent beadwork on the continent. But he also cast farther afield to incorporate elements from an array of African cultures.
Borrowing, transforming, and reinterpreting those archetypes is a delicate practice, the designer allowed. “We are trying to approach it in a way so that the result is not obvious,” he said. “If you know, you know. And if not, that’s okay too. We want people to wear these clothes on a daily basis and not just associate them with traditional ceremonies.”
Fashion, he noted, offers a means of rewriting history in the correct way. “We have a responsibility as Africans to define our future and not let others come in and do it for us” he said. Hence, resurrection.
Having turned the altar into a stage, Ngxokolo sent out a tableau of the house’s signature knitwear. Cardigans might suit corporate settings as much as the beach, while a Venus-on-the-half-shell halter top, with tiers of iridescent fish scales and a swingy pearl fringe, was a party all on its own. Colorful polos and shirts—including one that riffed on both African symbols and the Sistine Chapel—mixed with statement graphic dresses. A long black and white number with a raffia belt and a short one in shades of blue and green looked strong. The brand’s approach—local sourcing, semi-naturals for summer, merino and mohair for winter—makes it possible to achieve zero waste: Leftovers are repurposed into pieces like the colorful patchwork coat shown here. The ethos, Ngxokolo said, is “retro-aspirational”— retro for Africa; aspirational overall. Thanks to a celebrity clientele that includes Michelle Obama, Alicia Keys, and Sarah Jakes Roberts, Maxhosa Africa made the leap to New York last spring, opening a flagship on lower Broadway.
Utopian as it may sound, Ngxokolo sees the continent following in the footsteps of Asia, becoming high tech and ahead of the curve on a number of points. “In 10 years, I see African fashion competing head-to-head with European, American, and Asian fashion,” he said, citing among other reasons a fast-growing tech scene and an emergent middle class. “Those people need infrastructure, they’ll need resorts, and they’ll also want luxury.”
