A Contemporary Dream

A fashion project that explores the relationship between modern (present day) Nigerian fashion with traditional aesthetics.

Despite having a cultural background and history that is colorful, exuberant and often flamboyant, Nigeria is constantly influenced by western opinions and ideals on everything from education to fashion. Over the years there has been a steady need to look or sound as foreign as possible, and every form of expression is conformed into white collar boxes that colonization, religion and societal pressure have created. Fashion being one of the strongest forms of personal expressions globally, has become especially susceptible to this influence. Traditional aesthetics, and narratives in fashion have been downplayed and restricted within the boxes of white collar urban wear and traditional regalia - until now.

There is an awakening, a resurgence of curiosity and a hunger in the fashion world for a true and more profound understanding of what is traditional and authentically Nigerian; and a desire to recreate a new aesthetic for tomorrow. It feels as though time has stopped and been reconfigured to perfectly merge the old and the now. Nigeria is finally redefining its own aesthetics through the eyes of design talents who are using locally produced fabrics, prints, incorporating symbols, deconstructing the traditional regalia and embedding Nigerian history into today’s fashion.

My project is a fantasy that strives to juxtapose this modern day Nigerian fashion against a traditional atmosphere. An exaggerated attempt at creating characters that perfectly sync traditional styles with modern elements. Eerie, androgynous and mysterious are some of the peculiarities bringing this dream together. Working with Nigerian household fashion brands like “Iamisigo, Ré, Nkwo, and Orangeculture” it would be important to say that this generation is remaking Nigerian fashion; conscious of the future but unearthing the secrets and mysteries of the past. A contemporary dream is a celebration of the beauty and diversity of fashion here in our country and a toast to the future.