From Rainbow to Fire
Welcome to the first edition of the KAFART’s Weekly. Enjoy beautiful moments in the world of fashion and arts.
Fashion is the air we breathe, and art is a language of different dialects. At KAFART, we're keen breathers and we want you to breathe with us too. And as we learn to speak art and breathe fashion, we hope to take you along on our journey, to see and to experience both dimensions in lights even we didn't know existed.
The KAFART Weekly is our new project, a newsletter where we go on voyages into both worlds, exploring the different plains and centres of both the arts and fashion worlds. We explore, seek to discover and reveal to you, the deepest insight and all the intrigue we can find. For all the magic and light in the world that there is, we aim to find as much as our souls can — informatively, innovatively, creatively and weekly. And after a long engaging week at work, we hope to tell you our story, what we find. And we hope that these letters light embers in your hearts.
TRANSLATED THROUGH TIMES
When June walked in, we spun it off with the Kaduna Fashion and Arts Exhibition 2021. A pillar for our existence brought to life. Time never felt like it could be part dialect in arts and fashion, not until we translated, through time. But little did we know that we would emanate so much color, and that it would be as we drew to a close that we would realize we probably made rainbows. But as all rainbows must fade with the sun, the month of August has come to quite a colorful end, and with it, some of its visitors that have graced our world.
We've been privileged to visit the history books and peek into the lives of world-class artists such as Tayo Tekovi Quaye, Yusuf Grillo, and Hajiya Gana that have taken Africa beyond the continent to the hearts of some of the most significant places on the planet (and yes, we're so proud that they're Nigerians). After quite a while, we basked by the walls of the ancient palace of Zazzau, touched by the sun. And oh, it was love at first sight for some of the fashion picks we flaunted. Did you see that Tongoro we put on? Or the stunning couple Alledjo outfit for him and her? If you look close enough, we're pretty sure you'd find a post-full of answers to some of the What should I wear!? Questions you ask yourself when there's that conflict that plagues all of us once upon many times. Fret not; KAFART is here for you.
AN AFFAIR OF OBJECTS AND COLOURS
Art is the hand by which men speak a language that isn't necessarily always scribbled in words. Jolaoso Wasiu Adebayo (@adebayothephotographer) started on our spotlight page in August, and he showed us Art in quite the light. The way he flustered colorful manifestations of the North passed the message that the North is just as diverse as the branches that stemmed from a tree. Intrigued by this magic, we dug deeper, and recent evidence we discovered shows that Adebayo might be having an affair with the Monochrome filter, AKA black, and white (Check out his page, and yes, you didn't hear it from us 👀 🤫). He definitely would cap in as our photographer for the month.
On the other hand, we also seemed to have made another find: that any object, literally any object, can be art. Be it tires, cupboards, bedsheets, or even sim cards, yes, sim cards(you didn't hear wrong) can be art. Azuka Muoh (@arrestingyellow) gave us this revelation with the grace of a prophet that art speaks through objects too. Be it Coca-Cola bottles or palm wine tree leaves and tires (which more or less seem like a favorite for him). The blend of the most unrelated items that are used knocks you off your feet when you see harmony instead of chaos. This is what our literature teachers would call, we believe, a paradox. And as far as August goes, Azuka is a god of disorderly harmony and objects in his own right.
HISTORY THROUGH WOMEN; FASHION'S AUGUST VISITOR
The world saw the women of South Africa own the month of August in remembrance and in honor of over 2000 icons who marched for better gender equalities since 1956. We see the likes of sensational musician Brenda Fassie (MA Brr), Forbes endorsed entrepreneur Bonang Matheba (Queen B), and the eccentric activist and lawyer Thando Hopa, the Woman of Steel for people living with albinism across Africa. Now each one of these women holds a high-rise fashion taste. Still, it's South Africa's "Mother of the Nation," Mrs. Winnie Madikizela-Mandela, who held our gaze the longest with her Winnie-styled head wrap, that she made her, well, sort of a trademark. It was so prominent that in 2018 after she passed on, in an ocean of women, hundreds of them donned that same head wrap, singing in honor of the anti-apartheid titan. Who says fashion can't be part of your legacy? Sometimes it's in the little things we're routined into that sing loud after leaving this side of eternity.
August has taken a bow, and now the Ember quarter is here, the last laps of the year. We've all been colorful, too, these past 8 months, in as far as readaptation after a pandemic goes. But there's still a need to do more, to push further. And like the embers that burn a light in the dull grey charcoals, walk into this quarter with coals, only this time they're not on your lap, you're the fire that glows within them. Not all that glitters is gold; it can be fire too. You're fire; burn brighter now. We promise, we'll burn with you too.
P.S. You don’t want to miss our Event of the Month — the very first art talk gathering, featuring discussions and a Paint and Sip event, created by our sister body Gazelle Creative Collective and hosted by the very Zainab Isa. Book your seats now, we only have a couple of them and you can’t afford to miss it!