South African designer examines identity with clothing

DW (English)

Luxury fashion can go deeper than gorgeous fabrics and interesting silhouettes. Can it also be used to tell conceptual exciting stories about identity? Prize-winning South African designer Gugu Peteni uses her designs to speak volumes.

Transcript

00:00They love dykes.

00:06These luxury garments are more than just beautiful, they communicate.

00:10The fabric, the cut, the silhouette, it all tells a story.

00:15How and why is fashion a sign of identity?

00:17Let's find out.

00:20I chose fashion to speak about identity because it's a universal language.

00:27South African Gugu Bedeni designs conceptual fashion and has just won the Africa Fashion

00:32Up competition in early 2024.

00:36What makes her collection?

00:37Echoes of Self, the winner.

00:39When I heard about Africa Fashion Up and the platform and opportunity to go to Paris and

00:44showcase during Paris Fashion Week, obviously it was like a daunting idea to enter.

00:49So the idea of Echoes of Self is the idea that within one person we carry all these

00:54personalities.

00:56So winning Best Young Designer means a lot of doors opening.

01:00I have a six-month mentorship with Balenciaga.

01:03And again it goes back to that young girl at 17 years old who seemed to be next to those

01:08brands.

01:09However, the big dream came with a condition.

01:13A collection for Paris Fashion Week, 12 looks to be pre-financed and completed immediately.

01:19To do a whole entire 12 look collection in one month is nearly impossible.

01:28Gugu likes challenges and the struggle of life even grounds the concepts of her designs.

01:33But before we find out if the Paris collection was finished on time, let's have a look at

01:38how Gugu managed to become a fashion designer in the first place.

01:41Between 12 and 10 I started sketching and I used to sit for hours and just draw clothing.

01:46So obviously telling a black parent now that you're going to be a creative and study art

01:52was a crazy, crazy idea.

01:54I was an A student, so obviously as parents I'm sure they had all these high hopes of

01:59like a doctor, an engineer.

02:02And then here comes little me and I said that I want to study fashion.

02:07To say my dad lost his mind for a bit is an understatement.

02:12Why does fashion have this special power for her?

02:15I'm one of a twin and my sister and I were always compounders.

02:19So when you're a twin there's this sense of loss of identity.

02:23For me clothing then came into play because it became this is a vehicle that has the power

02:27to do so much more than just getting dressed in the morning.

02:30I can communicate with people, people can understand me through it.

02:34Some children's dreams have the makings of reality.

02:37Before we find out if Gugu's understanding of self and stories finally made it to Paris

02:41Fashion Week, we have a look at how her family history led her to deal conceptually with

02:46identity.

02:47When I got the opportunity to do this Paris Fashion Week, I obviously had to come up with

02:55a collection and be inspired by something.

02:58And the ideas of Echoes of Self came to me.

03:01I was going through my family line, both my mom and dad, and I was thinking about every

03:05single member, all aunts and uncles have English names.

03:08How did this apartheid era legacy of having an African name and an English name influence

03:14Gugu creatively?

03:15We are walking around with different personas that all exist into one and this idea that

03:21you're this person, but all of yourselves are sort of speaking and entertaining.

03:26Gugu's name means proud of in Isekosa.

03:33How did she interpret the idea of dual identities in her sweaters?

03:38So this one I think probably would be the best sort of like direct personification of

03:43the Echoes of Self, because you see the sort of the person as a whole, but he's broken

03:47up into different segments.

03:50So I would describe this one as like the internal conversation that comes with idea of dual

03:56personalities or multi personalities, and then the branding of Gugu, Gugu, Gugu.

04:00But then for me, it's a reminder of having even myself in different spaces.

04:06Gugu's sweaters tell a story.

04:08But why does she make them from mohair?

04:1050% of the world's mohair is produced right here in South Africa.

04:14And we have the best landscape to farm the goats, which is in the Kuru.

04:18I love mohair for all its wonderful and unique qualities, which is durability, luxury, niche,

04:24but the most important part of it obviously is a sustainable factor.

04:28I am able to source locally, produce locally, manufacture and spin locally.

04:33Nevertheless, the question remains, why did Gugu choose clothing as a means of communication?

04:39And not to forget, what about Paris?

04:43I think what makes fashion so special for me is it's physical, it's textural, that all

04:48that processing for me is so beautiful, and I think that's why I choose fashion.

04:53Finally, the moment arrived for Gugu to present her story about identity in France.

04:59How was it received?

05:00It was extremely nerve-wracking.

05:04In fashion, you get to learn how to work well under pressure.

05:08When the models hit the runway, for me it was really a moment to say, wow, it really happened.

05:20The collection was a success, and I think it's because people can really identify with it.

05:31After Paris, I am definitely feeling determined.

05:35I feel like before we had a goal, we had a dream, but there was no reality or test.

05:41I feel like now that I have a toe in, I want to get the whole foot in.

05:45From 2025, Gugu's designs will be in luxury clothing stores in Paris.

05:50Her garments will tell stories of identity way beyond Africa.

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