African Street Style Festival in London to showcase fashion

By

Cajsa Lykke Carlson

Published
Jul 8, 2016

Since 2013, the African Street Style Festival in London, which is produced by creative arts organisation Simplicious, has showcased the best creative talent from the continent.

The upcoming edition will take place on 23-24 July on the historic Boundary Estate in Shoreditch, east London. The festival will feature music from a number of artists, including Italian-Sudanese singer Amira Kheir, and is described as an expression of creative and urban culture that reflects the continuing influence of African cities, regions and its diaspora on London life.

As the global interest in African fashion designers continues to grow, and European designers seek inspiration from the continent - Louis Vuitton's latest menswear show in Paris had a punkish African safari theme - it's only fitting that the showcase should include fashion. On Sunday the 24th, British/Nigerian designer Samson Soboye will be showcasing creations from his current collection.

There will also be a platform for emerging talent from this year’s London College of Fashion BA16 Show, with collections featuring in Vogue’s Spring / Summer 2017 Ready To Wear edit (designers include Henrietta O’Connor, whose BA16 collection with Yumi Kim made use of materials such as PVC, suede and latex.)

“The simple objective behind the festival is to provide a unique, open, street-based platform to highlight and celebrate the influence of African creativity in London,” says Simplicious' founder and CEO Jeffrey Lennon. “We achieve this through welcoming emerging and established artists to share their talents in photography, public and visual art, music, fashion, film, and live performance."