Public spirit pips posers on Rajah’s more caring catwalk
● In a world where bloggers and Instagrammers hog the front row to spend more time posing for their iPhones than taking in the clothes, fashion shows have become one of my least favourite social shindigs.
But when one of the country’s top couturiers invites you to a show that ditches the runway for a homier setting and uses the stage to shine a spotlight on violence against children, you know this is not going to be a runof-the-mill offering.
So off I flew to Cape Town on Wednesday for the reveal of Gavin Rajah’s new resort collection, which was held at @Home’s flagship V&A Waterfront store and marked the start of AFI Cape Town Fashion Week.
Why the locale? A nod to the arrival of Gav’s new range for the homeware retailer, with models sashaying between lamps and chairs and beds draped in Rajah linens.
Walking into the venue, I greet veteran musician Sipho “Hotstix” Mabuse before chatting to Jenny le Roux of Habits fame, who tells me she isn’t showing this time around, but she’s still up to her neck in export orders.
Across the room I spot billionaire couple Patrice Motsepe and Precious MoloiMotsepe, the latter glowing in bias-cut silk chiffon with a beaded bodice, designed by the man of the hour. Patrice looks dashing in a blue suit (although he admits the jacket is a little too tight to button up).
Fashionistas will know that Precious is the founder and CEO of African Fashion International, which owns the Cape Town and Joburg platforms. She gets up to say a few words before the show.
The clothes? A sumptuous blend of couture and sportswear, with PVC juxtaposed against crepe and chiffon and a liberal sprinkling of logo-ed ribbon, a big trend spotted in a range of international collections from couture house Christian Dior to streetwear brand OffWhite.
Then it’s off to dinner at Asian-inspired restaurant Haiku, where we are treated to a smorgasbord of delights including tuna tacos, honey chilli chicken and spinach and cream cheese dumplings, with dessert coming in the form of a sliver of cheese cake with an Oriental bent.
At the restaurant, I say hello to that superstylish couple Nicky van der Walt and LeeAnn Liebenberg. Nicky tells me he’s not sitting at home twiddling his thumbs now that he’s no longer at the Ritz hotel — he’s started a new luxury hospitality management company with businessman Maree Brink, who owns The Bay Hotel in Camps Bay.
Also transitioning career-wise is art fundi Elana Brundyn, who has swapped the Zeitz MOCAA for the Norval Foundation, which will be opening an equally impressive new museum out in Steenberg in April.
“It will be connecting the recent past with the future of Africa and beyond, with a strong focus on sculpture thanks to a 4ha sculpture park,” she says.
Someone I didn’t get to chat to because, although she was on the list, she didn’t pitch, was Magda Wierzycka, the billionaire asset manager who probably decided to stay home to lick her wounds after being dragged on Twitter that very morning.
Magda, who naively posted the iconic pic of Hector Pieterson (who died during the June 16 Soweto uprising) to commemorate the Sharpeville massacre of March 21 1960, might have experienced a better reception if she’d mimicked Gav’s more fashionable way of observing Human Rights Day.
The Unicef South Africa Goodwill ambassador announced an initiative to raise funds for the organisation’s #ENDViolence campaign through the sale of a specially designed T-shirt.