Students to strut national catwalk
8 DUT designers to show ranges at SA Fashion Week
IN A first for Durban, eight fashion students from the Durban University of Technology (DUT) will show their designs on the national runway that is the South African Fashion Week.
The man behind the initiative is Gideon, designer, creative lecturer and mentor for third-year students.
“I saw the potential at the end-of-year show and wanted to give them a national platform,” he said. “Key players in the industry will see their talent which will propel their careers as designers.
“Durban’s melting pot produces a variety of creative thinkers. We have everything from surfing to Zulu culture, and I think that inspires people and enables our designers to interpret things differently.”
Eight students were selected to represent DUT. “We looked at all the ranges from 2016 and selected students who were serious about fashion and who we knew could deliver a beautiful range,” said Gideon.
“This is the first time we’ve done something like this. We spoke to Lucilla Booyzen, the founder of Fashion Week, and she was thrilled. It’s an amazing opportunity for Durban, and for the students, fresh out of third year, to make their mark.”
We spoke to three of the students. Yanela Mtolo The 22-year-old was born in the Eastern Cape, moved to Durban when she was 11 and graduated from New Forest High School in Montclair.
“As a designer, I am influenced by Xhosa culture and source most of my inspiration from it. I like to interpret the traditional silhouettes into something modern and quirky that mixes trends,” she said.
Mtolo will bring her “dream” range. “This was deeply influenced by rural women and how they dress, especially women from the Eastern Cape. The range was also a way of modernising the traditional geometric lines of Xhosa attire,” she said.
“I still can’t believe I’ll be showcasing at Fashion Week. I thought it was something that would come later in my career. I am very excited.”
Mtolo is thrilled that South Africans are starting to support their own designers. “Even in magazines now, most things are by our designers. Our people are becoming more bold and aren’t afraid to stand out.” Nivadni Sewnath Nivadni Sewnath graduated from DUT last year and will show seven outfits from her ladieswear collection, Rise of the Oxx, on March 29.
Her twin sister, Nishthi, will also be showing her range at Fashion Week.
Nivadni’s collection is inspired by the Xhosa people who are known for their rich cultural history of beautiful blankets. The Abakwetha blankets are worn during the initiation ritual marking the passage from boyhood. Their colours are a striking white with red stripes. “I have chosen this because of my love of African culture,” she said.
Her career started early. She was interested in art and soon started doing sketches and designing clothes. “The industry is fast-paced and you need a lot of hard work and dedication when it comes to preparing for the shows,” she said. Leandi Mulder The 28-year-old from Durban North has had a long journey to her fashion career, studying for her BTech Fashion at DUT only after completing a degree at Stellenbosch University.
“The industry is highly pressured and competitive,” she said.
“There are many, many hours of dedication and hard work that go into making your craft a success.
“It is, however, extremely fulfilling to see your designs come to life, and the public’s response to what you made.”
She will show seven outfits paired with her own handmade accessories which took her five months to complete.
Her range is Restore and she took inspiration from the Japanese craft of Kintsugi, where broken ceramics are mended with gold lacquer. Inspired by the philosophy of turning waste into new creations, she created an up-cycled range made entirely of secondhand clothes.
Her process includes a lot of conceptualising, drawing and pattern design before making the garments.
“My garment construction was particularly time-consuming as I first created my textiles through patchwork, requiring a lot of handwork and precision,” she said.
Mulder looks up to designers such as Marianne Fassler and Terrence Bray for innovative designs. “All their creations are made with meticulous handwork and they have an inspirational zero-waste approach to design.”
She said Durban had its own unique style. “We have a very laid-back beach lifestyle, and fashion is often a reflection of that.
“The fashion-conscious youth in the city have some of the best street styles in the country. They are fearless and create their own trends.”