Arise African Fashion

Arise Africa Fashion Awards: African Fashion Celebrates Talent

Last night more than 1000 fashion insiders and their guests descended on the Sandton International Convention Centre in Johannesburg to celebrate the fashion talent of Africa at the inaugural Arise Africa Fashion awards.

Walking away with the joint top prize of Designer of the Year was South African David Tlale and Nigerian Tiffany Amber.

They both win a place on the catwalks of Mercedes Benz New York Fashion Week in September of this year, as part of the Arise African Fashion Collective show.

As hosts, Dr Precious Moloi Motsepe, from African Fashion International (AFI), and Nduka Obaigbena, Arise founder and THIS DAY GROUP chairman, said their welcome speech, "change in Africa will not come through politics, but through the people."

This was a theme of the evening that was echoed in the moving speech by former first lady of France, Cecilia Attias, who spoke of her belief that women will offer the real solutions to the issues of Africa and quoting Desmond Tutu and his definition of Ubuntu, saying that "a person is a person through other persons."

And so it was with fashion in Africa last night, as designer, models, producers, media and buyers from the four regions of Africa and across the world, came together in an unprecedented demonstration of African unity to celebrate the diversity and cultural authenticity of this continent's fashion in the context of a world-class, 21st century fashion aesthetic.

Source: DEXIGNER.COM
Website: http://www.dexigner.com/fashion/news-g18130.html
Date: 21st June 2009