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Ozwald Boateng: Tribal Traditionalism
By: Marian Faddis
Photos by: Gruber-FWD
Click on image to see bigger photo.
Paris, Jul 3, 2001/ FWD/ --- How does a man of African ancestry express and preserve his heritage in the
modern world?
Ozwald Boateng presented his answer today in his spring/summer 2002 collection entitled
"Tribal Traditionalism."
The lush gardens of the British Embassy served as the venue, creating a calm and rather
conservative mood.
The dress code followed suit, with the crowd rightly more tailored than usual.
Set under a traditional white tent, the beat of an African drum set the show in motion as a beautiful
African woman dressed in traditional tribal wear strutted down the runway.
Following her were men of various ethnicities robed in impeccably tailored suits, each accompanied by
a tribal belt, spear, hat or mask.
The collection was a combination of casual and dress suits in a range
of colors, with a few T-shirts with a print of the continent of Africa mixed in.
More than anything, Boateng's collection presented options for the modern man looking to preserve his
identity in a very ethno-centric world.
The Savile Row tailor proved, through the use of colors such as
bright pink, purple, turquoise and green, that a man can be proper without being boring.
His suits are for the respectably hip man of today.
Each model was further adorned with body markings resembling tribal paint, only made of gems.
Again, it seemed a modern way to express ones past in a new way.
The combination of the proper setting, tribal moving to hip-hop music and a group of strong and diverse
models were perfectly juxtaposed to create the theme of the classically tailored yet swank man unwilling
to forget his ancestral roots.
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