Africa: The Fashion Continent

The Fashion Continent

Emmanuelle Courrèges

Fashion from the African continent has burst onto the world scene with e ervescent vibrancy, inspiring creativity everywhere, from haute couture to street style.

From the runway in Lagos and the Afropunk festival in Johannesburg, to the “image makers” of Marrakech and the in uencers of Dakar or Accra, a new gener ation of African fashion designers, photographers, bloggers, and artists are rede ning the aesthetic contours of the continent. Audacious, humorous, disruptive, and innovative are the bywords of these young creatives who, while drawing upon and reval orizing their heritage, o er an ultra-contemporary new perspective. e revolutionary designers—from Senegal to Nigeria to South Africa—are reinventing their textile and historical traditions: bazin fabrics blend with plastics, stretch gives body to woven cloth, mesh beading inspires knitwear designs, and the traditional adire print—championed by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Michelle Obama— embellishes silk dresses and pencil skirts. Body artists transform their face or hair into an ambulant social manifesto, and photog raphers—using clothing and accessories—shed new light onto questions of identity, gender, and color. is volume celebrates a creative, e ervescent generation, which—by breaking the rules and rewriting the narrative of the African continent—is inventing a new and resolutely African chapter in the history of fashion that is now resonating across the globe.

Emmanuelle Courrèges has contributed to maga zines including Elle, Marie-Claire, l’Express Styles, and Vogue Italia. She was born and raised in western Africa (Cameroon, Senegal, and the Ivory Coast), where she lived for twenty years. She founded LAGO54, a plat form that supports and promotes contemporary African fashion designers in France. HC 240 pages 300 color illustrations 9 ½ × 12 ¼ in. (24 × 31 cm) ISBN: 978-2-08-151341-9 US $65 / Can. $85 / £55 / 60 € Publication: October 2021