News
Damola Durosomo
Mar. 01, 2017 08:37PM EST

Ikea Enlists Distinguished Group of African Creatives To Design Its New Collection

The Swedish retail store has commissioned a renowned group of African creatives to design its 2019 flagship collection.

The next time you psych yourself up to take the day-long trip to Ikea, you may be delighted to find furniture and home goods created by African designers lining its never-ending shelves.

The Swedish retail giant, which owns 392 stores across 48 countries, has enlisted a noteworthy group of creatives from the African continent to produce its 2019 flagship collection.

The collaboration came about after, Marcus Engman, Ikea's Head of Design, and Ravi Naidoo, founder of Design Inbada—an annual conference for African designers— met to discuss and map-out a plan to spotlight the work of African architects, illustrators and designers, through Ikea's global platform, CNN International reports.

"The creative explosion which is taking place in several cities around Africa right now is something IKEA is curious about. We want to learn from this and spread it to the rest of the world," said Engman.

While it might seem like Ikea is simply hopping on the "Africa is now" bandwagon, many in the creative community recognize the benefits of the partnership for the African artists involved.

For locally based designers, the project is a way to garner international recognition, and promote an "African aesthetic" on global markets.

"Japanese minimalism once inspired a lot of design projects and the philosophy permeated the design community. Certain approaches in many urban African environments could benefit or contaminate the international world of design," said Ivorian architect, Issa Diabate.

Preliminary designs will be on display at the 22nd  Design Indaba conference in Cape Town, and will feature the work of renowned Rwandan architect, Christian Benimana and Senegalese fashion designer Selly Raby Kane, to name a few.

The full collection hits stores in 2019.

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Photo by Daniel Randall.

Natural Beauties Share Why CURLFEST 2018 Is More Than Just a Hair Festival

Here's what they had to say.

There's something about being surrounded by black people celebrating natural hair that makes CURLFEST so many things at once—a beauty festival, a family picnic, a bloggers hub, and an outdoor party to remember.

The Curly Girl Collective describes CURLFEST as a "Mecca of afros, twist-outs, curls (and beards) set to a soundtrack of positive energy." That's exactly what it looked like this past Saturday when thousands of people strolled into Prospect Park, Brooklyn as afrobeats, soca, dancehall, and hip hop jams blasted throughout the day. Hair was moisturized to perfection and complemented with great style—from floral jumpsuits to more casual t-shirts with slogans like, "Black Mixed with Black" and "Somewhere Between Oprah and Cardi B."

We asked some of the festival-goers to share what the festival meant to them and why they chose the people they came with to celebrate with them.

Here's what they had to say, with photography by Daniel Randall.

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Photo by Alec Lomami.

Alec Lomami's New Photo Series Shows the Beauty of Everyday Life in Kinshasa

The Congolese rapper questions our tendency to gaze at the continent in extremes through his series, "Kin la Belle."

Congolese rapper Alec Lomami touches base to share his photo series, Kin la Belle, with OkayAfrica.

Shot on film with a Leica 35mm, Lomami wants to show the complex beauty of Kinshasa by capturing everyday life in his homeland. Though these images are what you wouldn't usually see in other platforms covering the continent—they are just as valid.

In his statement below, he explains in depth the inspiration behind the series:

I was trying to take a picture of my aunt because she has this beautiful afro. She wouldn't let me though, telling me she wasn't presentable. She jokingly told me, "Are you trying to take my pictures so you can show people how we suffer here then solicit donations to create an NGO?" That interaction made me think of the conversations underway surrounding the negative portrayal of Africa.

As a counter, there has been a rise of publications whose aim is to show the continent is a positive light. Who can blame them? Even heads of states (who shall remain unnamed for the sake of maintaining my green card) refer to nations in Africa as "shitholes." Sometimes, however, it feels like portrayals have moved to the other side of the same coin. The Africa that I know isn't binary. It isn't the idealized Wakanda or the wild jungles tales of Tarzan—both written by white people funny enough (but that's a story for another time).

As I was taking pictures in Kinshasa, I wanted to capture Kinshasa as it is, rather than as I (or anyone else) thinks it ought to be. The truth is we have beautiful homes as well as shacks, we have asphalt roads as well as dirt roads. Not to sound overly romantic, but I think the amalgamation of the polarities and everything in between is what makes Kinshasa what it is—Kin la Belle.

Click through the slideshow to have a look at Kin la Belle, and revisit Alec Lomami's DRC Independence Day playlist here.

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Photo still via Youtube.

This Short Film Is a Striking First-Gen Tale Told Through a Regal Nigerian Mother

In Adeyemi Michael's "Entitled," we learn about his mother's take on being a first-generation Nigerian as she rides through Peckham on horseback in style.

As a first-generation Nigerian, I would be remiss to admit that the immigrant stories we hear from our parents and our elders can be taken for granted. I find myself asking them to repeat their tales of migration—which, for some, began when they were younger than most of us were when we left home for the first time—just so I can be sure to stay true to my roots and pass their experiences on to the next generation.

Nigerian-British filmmaker Adeyemi Michael has done just that in his new short film, Entitled. We see his mother ride through Peckham—which is home to the largest Nigerian community in the UK—on horseback in regal, Yoruba attire.

The film premiered on Channel4's short film vertical, Random Acts, where the synopsis reads:

What does the immigrant fantasy feel like? Adeyemi Michael reimagines his mother's idea of moving from Nigeria to Peckham in Entitled, a short film about leaving your country of origin. Riding a horse dressed in traditional Yoruba ceremonial wear, Abosede Afolashade, a first generation immigrant, takes to the streets of Peckham.

Watch it in full below.

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