At the Johannesburg Fashion Week, which celebrated pan-African couture and featured designers and creatives from the fashion industry around the continent, everything was glitz and glamour. Alia Bare, a fashion designer from Niger Republic, took centre stage this year with a collection that she believes will promote a positive image of her unstable country, which is subject to economic sanctions and turmoil after a military coup in July.
Niger fashion designer #AliaBare took centre stage at #JoburgFashionWeek with a collection that she hopes will spread a positive image of her country, via https://t.co/Hv5R4xS4aU pic.twitter.com/f8suJfZ6o5
— Africa Fashion International (@AFI_sa) November 12, 2023
Living in Senegal and India, Bare presented a sophisticated collection on Thursday that reflected her experiences around the world.
“It is a very important collection for me because it represents what I am in terms of my culture, my background. I’m from Niger and I’m from different ethnic groups, and I wanted to show that in this collection,” she said.
“Nowadays this is the most important thing. We are melting pot. We are a different blend of things and this is what makes us unique and what we should embrace totally.”
Speaking at the function, Bare noted that the world has long mistakenly linked Niger with political unrest, which she claims does not accurately reflect the beauty of her nation.
“When people talk about Niger they always talk about conflict, they talk about poverty and death, they talk about negative things,” she said.
“I know most people associate fashion with superficiality. But I think that fashion, through culture, can help to send a good message outside, an image of the country that is positive.”
She expressed her hope that her attempt to “share the love” she has for her nation is having the desired effect.
Bare’s DNA line is a synthesis of global inspirations, using Nigerese symbols and South African graphic designer design.
