Africa
Congolese focus on fashion in a weeklong celebration of style and homegrown talent
August 20, 20264:02 PM ET
Heard on All Things Considered
Emmet Livingstone
Congolese focus on fashion in a weeklong celebration of style and homegrown talent
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In a country better known for conflict and poverty, Congolese celebrated their designer side with the sixth year of DR Congo Fashion week
Transcript
JUANA SUMMERS, HOST:
When the Democratic Republic of Congo is in the news, it’s often due to poverty or conflict and, more recently, the Ebola outbreak. What gets less attention is its annual celebration of color, creativity and fashion. Reporter Emmet Livingstone in Kinshasa attended this year’s DRC Fashion Week, and he brings us this postcard
EMMET LIVINGSTONE, BYLINE: As rumba music plays on a hotel rooftop in the capital, Kinshasa, attendees at DRC Fashion Week stop at the entrance to show off their kaleidoscopic outfits. People cheer and photographers click their cameras at the men draped in tartan cloaks carrying canes. The women are in leopard print or sequin dresses and wear outrageously large hats. People aren’t wearing famous brands but outfits they’ve put together themselves, and everyone looks amazing
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
UNIDENTIFIED MUSICAL ARTISTS: (Singing in non-English language)
LIVINGSTONE: Nathalie Eoma is an international runway model from Congo and one of the cofounders of DRC Fashion Week
NATHALIE EOMA: (Non-English language spoken)
LIVINGSTONE: “Style here in Congo is really something we’re born with,” she says. “It’s like it’s in our DNA. It doesn’t matter whether you’re rich or poor. Everyone tries to add their own flair to what they’re wearing.”
This year’s show celebrated sapeur, a Congolese subculture focused on fashion, elegance and identity. Sapeur comes from the French acronym for the Society of Tastemakers and Elegant People. Cedrick Mbengi is a well-known sapeur as well as a designer himself. He’s wearing an eclectic outfit of blue suspenders over a red shirt and carries a see-through bubble umbrella
CEDRICK MBENGI: (Non-English language spoken)
LIVINGSTONE: “Today, I’m only wearing the colors of the DRC,” he says, “in order to support Congolese design.” Despite this national love affair with style, Congo, which is one of the poorest countries in the world, has no formal fashion industry to speak of
UNIDENTIFIED ATTENDEE: (Non-English language spoken, laughter)
(APPLAUSE)
LIVINGSTONE: This runway on a Kinshasa rooftop is the country’s only brush with high fashion. Hundreds of guests, all extravagantly dressed, turn up to gaze at the models and designs on display during the one-day event. Nathalie Eoma says she cofounded DRC Fashion Week as a way to showcase the untapped talents of young Congolese designers in front of a VIP local audience
EOMA: (Non-English language spoken)
LIVINGSTONE: “The aim is also to promote an authentic Congolese aesthetic,” she says, “when many people tend to dress up in a western way.”
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
LIVINGSTONE: On the runway, models wear multicolor patchwork suits or outfits incorporating traditional Kuba textiles. These feature complex geometric patterns and are woven from palm leaf fibers. The clothes are exuberant and striking. The characteristic Congolese style is on full display. In a country where conditions are tough and people often at odds, fashion offers a burst of color, self-expression and uncomplicated joy. For the designer Cedrick Mbengi
MBENGI: (Non-English language spoken)
LIVINGSTONE: “Fashion is a dream for me,” says the 33-year-old, who says money is a daily struggle. “I fell asleep, and I had this dream. It’s a dream worth clinging to.” For NPR News, I’m Emmet Livingstone in Kinshasa
(SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC)
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