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Project Brief 

Name: Mafuta Sidane • Fashion & Textile Foundation 

State Project Title: Deep dive into the culture of Congo 

State the Aim of the project:  

The aim of this chosen project of mine was to simply convey the beauty of my country, Congo,DRC a country in central Africa Known for their Beauty and fashion. This country is not really spoken about a lot, so I wanted to show everyone what they are missing out in about this country, I wanted to sort of write a story throughout my sketchbook with textiles, design/garment. I think I executed it well showing the storyline of beauty within Congo Using the structure of hair from the Mangbetu tribe which symbolises beauty, combined with the colourful garments of the Liputa. 

Brief statement: 

My motivation for this route was my mother to be honest, she would always talk about Congo and how it empowers her today, she shows me every day not to be embarrassed on our culture and to express it. Personally, I always thought there wasn’t really anything special about Congo, Until the stories and the research I've done. And found out Congo is a Country known for beauty and empowerment. 

Objectives: With this module I'm planning on to achieve, to tell a beautiful story about my country and all about the incredible culture, I'm going to do this through my designs/illustrations, sketches/garment. 

What skills will you draw upon and develop through this project? 

The skill I want to draw upon mainly are the skills to creativity, stepping out my comfort zone and doing something different. I also want to gain some self-confidence as in the last couple modules I always doubted myself and my ability to do more/or better because I know I can push myself harder, I just never believed. 

Are there any new skills/techniques/materials you want to explore in this project? 

I want to explore more on the pattern cutting side to fashion, this may be easy for most but for me I need some more lessons on this, just to get the full understanding on how to start. Or maybe I just need to find my own way to do this so next time it comes to this, I'll be heads down and focused. 

What Concept/narrative have you chosen? 

The concept I chosen for this module is my background, where my other half of my family are from, which is Congo. 

Why have you picked this theme? 

I've picked this theme because, it is my home, my background, my pride, I just feel like the country Congo and the Congolese culture/ people are talked about enough within the Africa Continent and I feel like people are missing out on this beautiful country. 

What is it that interests you about the theme? 

Congo and its rich tradition and beautiful culture from the way we dress, the way we style our hair, this is what drawn me to go in this direction of focusing on Congo and its beautiful background for this project. 

What will your research into first? Your starting point for research 

My starting point will begin with me, finding out why most things where honoured as beauty in Congo, I'll be taking those sources of information to form a garment so show what is that is considered as beauty in Congo.  

What search terms could you use for secondary research? 

~For y secondary research ill start to look in the library for any information to do with heritage/Africa, Congo. 

~Finding websites (internet resources) that link within my theme of Congo or heritage. 

Where will you begin your primary research? 

Within the primary research, I'll start doing: 

Surveys and questionnaire. 

Observational studies. 

Interviews and focus groups. 

What fashion designers/artist/stylist do you think you will look at first to support your work. 

I'll be looking at African designers that uses their heritage as an inspiration for their garments, I looked at designers such as LOZA MALÈOMBHO, Lisa Folawiyo. These artist uses prints and patterns within the garments that they wear in their country and turn it to a beautiful garment. This inspired me to do the same and look into the print we have in Congo with our tradition garment which is called the liputa. 

How will you begin your experimentation process? What techniques or materials will you begin with? 

~Ill begin my experiment processes by gather the many research I need  

~Start sketching out illustration ideas inspired by what I've gathered and researched.

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Ideas: On this page I've build up all the ideas on how each step will go, and how it will form together. I got the build-up of the head of the statue and beside it the remake of my own created on my pattern cut pieces, Also I have displayed where I got the idea of the strands from the skirt, I took these small features from the skirt and the statue because I thought I could create something new and creative linking the two together in one garment, I like the outcome of this it was something different for me, I just wished I had put a lot more height to the head to give it more of a dramatic look.

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Grass Skirt build up:

The build-up of my skirt was slowly getting there, I didn't believe that this skirt will come how I was thinking it would turn out, but after completing the ruffles on the skirt its sort of looking like my illustrations of the garment. The ruffles look kind of scuffed but those would soon be sorted. 

When I completed this skirt I started to notice the ruffles sort of lose and hanging, so I came up with a solution to sew over them to keep them all secured, honestly I don't know why I didn't think of doing this in the first place because ,hand sewing these ruffles on did take some time and I regret it, but it is what it is because I managed to finish it and it came out great.

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Tuesday 9th May2023’

The Garment Build up

Today’s session was all about getting the making started,I’ve started of with a practice piece using calico,I only made the upper half of the garment with the statues head because I knew that was going to be the most difficult thing to execute.

Stuffing the head with cotton was the idea I was going for but once I started it wasn’t forming it’s shape correctly,but as a I kept on going and shoving the head with the cotton I started to see some improvements,I just know now for the real thing I just need to keep on stuffing to get that stand that I’m looking for.

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Mangbetu(braided hair)

Congo is known for their well-done hair/braids, Mangbetu braids were used to distinguish between tribal affiliations, material statues, religions, and social positions. For example, the Democratic Republic of the Congo Mangbetu women wore their hair in these “basket like styles which this then accentuated the skull elongation which portrayed beauty and class and set them apart from other women of other regions. 

At this point you may be thinking how does braids exactly play such a strong significant role within the black culture, well slaves during the time of the transatlantic slave trade era used their braids as so much more than a hairstyle truly gives the practice such as a powerful meaning. Before being shipped to America or Europe it would’ve been women’s hair was shaved off to detach them from their own roots. And once the hair grew back, slaves used their hairs for the important in their lives. 

Traditional Congo (Braiding)

Hair braiding has long been a tradition in the black community. As well as it is a bonding experience between mothers, sisters, and cousins, braiding takes time and patience. As early as the 15th century, hair was the main disseminator among the different tribes. 

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Hair Sculpture,Highness - Delphine Diallo

These amazing creations and hair sculptures done by Delphine Diallo were inspired by the Mangbetu tribe this artist liked how the hair had such distinctive height and width to it, she took that in and added it into her own designs. The details that this artist applied to the hairstyles, with only using just the hair which I find quite unique. This French hair designer Delphine does weaved locks of hair into these complex sculptures which she gets the inspiration from the Congolese Mangbetu tribe. These pieces combine the different mediums of sculpture, design and height to re-create the striking visual of the Mangbetu style. 

What I like most about this artist is that she puts a lot of volume to the hair, especially on the sides how she has the hairs sticking out firmly still. I also like how the details on the front of the hairs the little details are perfectly braided within the hairs underneath. This artist also has a very unique way to finish of the look which is covering the whole face with just the hairs, the signature look. 

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Zulu Hat~mangbetu style inspired

These flared shaped Zulu women wear across Africa, dyed with red ochre, these hats reflect the original designs of the hairstyles on which they are based on. Congolese culture has been a worldwide inspiration to many other African countries. The Zulu culture has appreciated the culture of the Congolese and how they present themselves to the world, The Zulus, they’ve made these hats that have been inspired by the Mangbetu tribe in Congo, this was done by the Zulus to bring and convey the inner beauty of the Congolese culture to life.   

The Zulu tribe has took the height and shape of the hairstyles done by the people of the Mangbetu tribe in Congo and created something of their own tribe and culture to wear ,As a Congolese myself this makes me happy to see because it shows that other countries are appreciating our culture and traditional wears, it's like Africans appreciating other Africans. 

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Mark making pt2 Congo Tribal markings

I haven't really noticed why the statues have such distinctive markings to the face, and I done some deep diving research on why and I found out that the statues that is worship and praised in Congo are a symbol of pride and beauty, and the markings are a symbol of that. So, the tribes in Congo they would mirror these beautiful markings and onto themselves. This distinctive scarification done within Congo consists of a number of lines along the sides of the face and also along the forehead. Elaborating and attract I've patterns/designs would be worked into the skin. This act demonstrates that a person becomes a complete adult when they are properly inscribed with the appropriate scars. 

There is also a saying in Congo with the tribes and the scars which is that people make these types of scars to protect young children from harm; when a woman has had many children who have died these scars is then given to the next child so that death will not be attracted to them. 

With my mark makings I wanted to take in these markings the tribes do on themselves and combine it with the details on the Liputa.This one I would say is my favourite, I wanted to apply different shading to make the markings bold to actually get the perfect detail that I took from the Liputa and the Statues. 

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The Beauty of Congo,Democratic Republic of the Congo(DRC)

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a Central African national, there's only one word I use to describe my country which is ‘incredible’ Congo is known as the counties most thrilling natural escapes. And this I could not disagree on because the lush rainforest the majestic rivers, Volcanos and the beautiful animals that live in our rainforest. Congo is one of the biggest and most beautiful country in Africa this country has a beautiful storyline on how we were built up from the bottom to the top. 

In Congo beauty and fashion is in our bloods it is our culture. Congo may be the poorest country/nation in Africa, but this country has an apparel large market worth which is growing fast as I speak. Although the mainstream western style garments like jeans as well as the high-end designer pieces are popular many women in Congo, they all choose to wear the traditional one-piece, Congolese dresses are the sartorial creative of the nations with the bold colours and the buoyant patterns that’s on the Liputas,which are mostly made from traditional west African fabrics. These Congolese garments are the centre piece of millions of wardrobes within the Congolese community. 

In Congo, Colours and fashion are the definition of our lifestyle. The streets of Congo, are filled with a range of colourful fabrics that paint the entire place with life and Joy. If you was to enter a Congolese event/party, you would see a mixture of modern and traditional outfits,with beautiful bright colours. The traditional ’Liputa’ keeps you fascinated with the numerous of designs/patterns. Many come in different fashionable styles,the liputa,Woman make use of it to complement their outfit and their creativity. Most woman in Congo complete their outfits with headscarves from their Liputa as in they will turn their liputa into a headscarf. 

The fabrics of the Liputa are more often not found in local markets, in Congo we often design our own liputa for different purposes, we tailor them sometimes for certain audiences, as an example if we are paying tribute to an very important leader, or making a special occasion or if it’s even for a sports event, trust me Congolese people go all out. 

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Planning Session :27th April The updated,better version!

Today’s session was all about finalising our designs on the mannequins, with mine, I updated my designs a little only on the head structure. The last 2 was a fail this time I believe I hit the nail on the head on how I want this head to sit in the shoulders on my garment, the last attempted I used tissue paper that was a big fail this time I used cotton which was more lighter to control and apply to the shoulders of the mannequin. Everything else remains the same the head was the only piece I played with a lot from the change of the form to the size. 

(Louise had also mentioned to me when I come to doing the state, was to leave out the face of the statue because the way the statue is built, the outline is already perfect as it is, also judging the fact that I will have a lot of colours to the skirt already having a faceless statue would make the garment look great.) 

As you can see how the head sits just on the shoulders which is sort of in the way of the face where the model would be, of course this wouldn’t be the exact placement of it, I’ll add a bit more height to it having stands coming from the bottom to keep the head up high and out of the way of the models face. 

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Practice piece2 on the Mannequin(the final)

This is one my final practice piece, this one was just a play around I wanted to make some adjustments to the whole look and see which one I prefer, there's a major change from my first my couple of ideas. In the beginning I didn't really know which route to take on what to make towards the end of this module, ideas weren’t really coming to mind. But from the help of Paula, I got the picture-perfect idea, she started me of with the structure of the statues head on the shoulders. My first ideas we were having thoughts on how I would execute the braided patterns of the hair onto the shoulders it would of took some time. 

The second option suggested by Paula, she suggested to just build up on that shape of the Mangbetu head/hair shape onto the shoulder instead of recreating the braid pattern, then to have the rest of the statue continuing down from the shirt. 

I wasn’t satisfied with this one, only because I was struggling to Hold up the shoulder piece, I stuffed it with tissue paper thinking it would hold up that structure, but the results proved me wrong, it flopped and started to bend. But I didn’t see this as a failed attempt I seen it as something to improve on, what can I do next time to improve the structure of the head to sit nicely onto the shoulder. 

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Practice piece idea: 1

Here My designs were based of my sketches that I have produced in my sketchbook. I made these thick scrunched up “sticks” with the papers to build and create that structure, form and height of the hair as shown side by side, I wanted to create like a wide shoulder piece with the hair form, I continued with this process over and over until I was satisfied with the height and the way it sat on the shoulders of the mannequin. 

The results were getting there I felt like I should have kept the sizes of the papers different, I feel like in that way it would give it more of a bold statement. 

I tried getting that height of the shoulders as that's the most important thing of the whole look of how the Mangbetu hairstyles were done, executing this was quite hard because I had to have the papers up high, and keeping them to stand up right to recreate that build-up of the hair. 

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Designer: NKWO ONWUKA

This African designer NKWO ONWUKA is an artisanal and a sustainable fashion brand. Nkwo brand creates artisanal and limited-edition pieces from second hand denim, which is made in Nigeria cotton, end of the line fabric, cutting table waste and single use of plastic. This inspired me to create a recycled design inspired by this designer I created a dress which I thought could sit nicely to the collection my design was a mirrored look to the piece the second mannequin had on. I've also created a pleat textile to represents the pleat ruffles shown on the dress, I feel like I should have made my designs a little more distorted just the way Nkwo Onwuka has done. 

The key focus to Nkwo Onwuka's brand includes textiles waste reduction, traditional craft skills preservation, environmental and animal conservation, women empowerment and innovation. Within this brand sustainability means being mindful of the impact of running a fast fashion business on the environment with a focus on the textile work/waste reduction and how the world can use this as a means of restoring the traditional values and their system. 

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Colours and patterns

On this page I wanted to take the patterns and design to come up with something of my own. On the day of the exhibition, I saw this mannequin that had all these beautiful bright colours that caught my attention I wanted to take this in print out my own prints and then turn them into a garment. The significant of the colours Within the Congolese culture, is that they have a symbolic nature in variety of areas. When rich and vibrant colours are used in the African fabrics and the African Clothing (Liputas)They represent emotions, and traditions. 

This mannequin was also a perfect picture to sit within my theme, as I am looking into the beauty of Congo and hair is one of the main aspects, this mannequin had twist bun hairstyle the proper name for it is the Bantu knots,

This is a hairstyle which two locks of hair are wrapped together. In Congo the Mangbatu tribe would do this hairstyle in a symbol of what tribe they belonged to, this style is also a symbol of pro Blackness and selflove. In Congo this hairstyle was done for female workers to hide their money gold or any other special materials of theirs. Till this day black woman are getting their done in twists as this hair style has more of a strong meaning to it and is most popular today within the black community. The Bantu knots are originated centuries ago within the south and west Africa females in Congo were known to be doing this hairstyle the most because the Congolese community believes that they carry a very strong meaning within the black community, which also is a representative of black pride. 

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SOUTH AFRICAN RAPPER:Sho Madjozi

Iconic outfit styled with a revelation approach.  

During the exhibition trip I stumbled across one of the pieces a musician worn once out on stage. Within Africa worldwide culture evolves. And this artist Sho had styled the Xi Belani personifies the evolution and challenges. 

For example Sho madjozi her iconic outfit has had a revelation approach to how she wears the xibelani,she wears it with shorts or a short xibelani below the knees.I used this as inspiration, using the bright colours which is also on the Liputa to create an inspired look.I’ve also used the pleats aswel as a big inspiration the pleats and ruffles is what attracted me from looking at what Sho was wearing,so I used that small detail to come up with a collection idea. Personally, I feel like I executed this very well with the textiles ideas I feel like I should’ve not just focused on one colour and should have had mixture of colours,but this colour of fabric was what I had left. 

(P.s) I had side by side views of the mannequin in the dress and my designs but looks like the evidence has been destroyed \:

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Here on The first page I wanted to recreate the other half’s of the statues, I wanted to really look into the details on the mask which are then inspired as prints to create the Liputas in the Congolese culture, I wanted to convey the power of both, because my sketchbook is a storyline of the empowerment of the Congolese culture within the statues and traditional clothing. This is why you can see on the second page, why I have put together the traditional clothing and statue heads together to connect the two strong histories together. The second page, honestly, I should’ve added a couple more Liputa patterns/Clothing together with the statues to tell the storyline of empowerment more vivid and clear for the audience. 

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Hair:Braids

On this page I wanted to show the power of our hair and why in Congo is important to worship the meaning. The act of braiding our hair is, to extremely claim our ground and our tribe. These unique braiding styles/patterns were a way to set tribes apart. Also, in the Republic of Congo women used their hair to portray their financial status, their material background and the tribes. 

Today many Congolese citizens and artists are still using the art of the African hair, braiding and styling to express themselves. From the long box braids, African threading,dreadlocks,cornrows or Bantu knots, so many artists from the republic of Congo are now using African hairstyles as a new form of expression today. I stand by this a lot because I believe our hair is the statement it’s like carrying history with us, Africans hair/style has a beautiful story and meaning behind it all, and it’s something I can listen about all day, being a proud black woman myself.