4 Fashion Brands Blurring Gender Boundaries
Òkafi Lookbook of Sevaria fashion brand. Photographer: @ojwoook, Models: @aggie_asira, @cherryblack01
Over the years, queer designers across Africa have been fighting to create a safe space for LGBTQIA+ communities to freely and unapologetically express themselves through style. In some African countries like Uganda, Nigeria, Kenya, and more, there are still laws against the community’s rights, and freedom to be themselves openly. To celebrate queer voices, we are shining a light on 4 designers across Africa, who explore queer identities in their designs, and give a voice to their community.
Udiahgebi
Founded in 2021, Udiahgebi is a queer fashion brand owned by Emerie Udiahgebi, a non-binary fashion designer in Lagos, Nigeria. Designing for femmes, effeminate queer men and unconventional people, their latest collection, MONUMENTA, encapsulates their mission of a modern renaissance. Across all nine looks, the intent is clear: sultry, bold, daring and confident.
“Extravagance and subtle drama are the core of my brand. Most queer people, especially ones who live in a repressive society like Nigeria can relate to being shut down and forced to silence our voices, and most of us withdraw into the arts as a means of expression. I was one such queer person, and it has really strengthened my artistic expression, to the point where it is able to scream without sound. I hope my garments enhance confidence and create main-character moments for all my wearers, especially the ones still trying to find their voice in a loud world constantly dictating to them who they should be. Just like my name Udiahgebi translates to ‘this one will live’, it is our aim to constantly sell the idea that “life is for the living” Udiahgebi says.
Udiahgebi is available worldwide. You can shop their pieces on Instagram either by sending a direct message or contacting them via email.
2. Sevaria
Designer Jamie Bryan Kimani is the founder of Sevaria, a high-fashion brand founded in Nairobi, Kenya in 2018. Jamie founded their own fashion label because they did not like “being boxed into gender.” As a result, they prioritise gender fluidity in their designs. With the use of beads and African textiles, their designs are rooted in the African identity. Although their designs generally have warm undertones for a minimalist feel, they remain bold and fierce.
For Kimani, their designs foster conversations on identity and expression. “Exploring menswear and womenswear means we are trying to deconstruct the norm of labelling clothes into men’s and women’s categories. It’s trying to mix and merge and give androgynous silhouettes and that in turn brings dialogues and conversations on gender, identity and how you want to express yourself. All of these pieces are created with pride.” Kimani explains.
Sevaria is available for worldwide sales. You can shop their pieces on Instagram by sending a direct message or contacting them via email.
3. Nao Serati
Neo Serati Mofammere launched his unisex label in 2014 in Johannesburg, South Africa. Nao Serati is a slow fashion brand that explores the differences in gender and sexuality. With the use of high-quality materials and fabrics like leather and denim, their designs are edgy, erotic, distinct and daring.
“Our queerness and our uninhibited expression of our inner being provide our design work a distinct point of view. At Nao Serati, we examine masculinity, femininity, blackness, hardness, and softness, as well as how all of these ‘contradictory’ ideas may coexist and be conveyed through design to portray African silhouettes”, Mofammere notes.
Nao Serati is a global fashion brand. It is available worldwide, and you can shop their products on their website or send a direct message to them on Instagram.
4. Vangei Official
Launched in January 2020 by Lolu Vangei, a trans man living in Lagos, Nigeria, Vangei Official is a fashion label that deconstructs conformity in gender. The ideas behind their designs are colourful, fiery, bold yet, at the same time, delicate.
“My brand is meant to cater to everybody. I am not one to be restricted by seasons or timing because I believe that fashion should be more about creativity and the mind; it should be a state of mind. I work with custom-made pieces; it’s about how you want me to design your piece. Gender is not a deciding factor. My pieces are timeless and genderless; they cater to every gender and also gender non-conforming folks. I make my pieces based on the happiness and joy it brings to me knowing that anybody can wear my style”, Lolu shares.
Their pieces are available to ship worldwide through their Instagram direct message or email.