On Thursday, South African Fashion Week hosted the SAFW AW22 Live collections at the Mall of Africa, Johannesburg.
The show, featuring 29 top designers, is the first SAFW Live runway since the pandemic started. Last year, they hosted digital collections.
For the show, SAFW collaborated with Fashion Bridges I Ponti della Moda to have South African designers partner with Italian designers and vice versa.
“Different countries, creativities, and life experiences meet in the Fashion Bridges project. Different people and institutions worked together to create an ambitious and innovative project to underline the importance of exchange and dialogue. Collaboration, mutual support and valuing differences are the core values of the future of creativity,” read a statement from SAFW.
Day one of SAFW was divided into two sections, the Fashion Bridges and Oppo Collections. Under fashion bridges, a South African designer partnered with an Italian designer. Meanwhile, under the Oppo Collections, local designers were showcasing individually.
Jacques Bam and Julian Cerro showcased an innovative collection titled “Syrrogism”. The collection investigates the natural process of pregnancy alongside the synthetic advances used in modern society to create a deep, personal story.
Fikile Sokhulu and Ilaria Bellomo presented “Mutual Threads,” a collection that explores different textile yarn manipulation techniques and the creation of timeless artisan pieces.
Sipho Mbuto and Allesia Dovero revealed a womenswear sustainable collection. Meanwhile, Amanda Laird Cherry showcased a unisex collection.
Other designers who showcased on day one of SAFW include Michael Peter Reid and Domenico Orefice, Thabo Kopele, Maklele, Neo AND Xavier Sadan.
Tonight's lineup includes Romaria, Ezokhetho, Erre, Manthso, Franc Elis, Sober and Rubicon.