WINDHOEK-After leaving footprints with her stunning designs at the Africa Fashion Reception hosted in Paris recently, one of the Namibian female designers, Maria Caley, has once again been invited to showcase her superior collections in Luanda, during the Angolan International Fashion Show (AIFS) early next month.
With her Amakeya Designs, Maria will again be expected to put Namibian fashion industry on the map when she will be showcasing her wearable collections inspired by the Vakavango, Ovahimba and Aavambo traditional materials at the AIFS. She says although this time she doesn’t want to focus more on just one tradition, she will try also to venture into modern collections and mix all the Namibian traditional attires to give the fashionistas a different look.
Maria is a textile and fashion designer based in Windhoek, lecturing at the University of Namibia (Unam). She has a Bachelor of Arts majoring in Fashion and Textiles from Unam and is currently pursuing her Master’s studies at Tshwane University of Technology, South Africa. Maria’s work often reflects her cultural heritage from the Kavango. She believes that working this way does not only allow her to be true to her being but also creates a unique identity in her work. Currently her work has been exploring the Kavango traditional baskets, extracting the natural dyes and creating her own motives from beautiful patterns on the baskets to create naturally dyed textiles for her garments. With all these unique elements in her work, her collections have been featured in numerous fashion shows and exhibitions both National and international.
Maria’s work has been showcased in South Africa, Angola, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Germany, Finland, Cuba, France and Australia. She was also chosen to represent Namibia in Africa Fashion Reception; an event promoting fashion designers from all over Africa hence exhibiting her garments in Angola will be a big platform for her. At the Africa Fashion Reception she showcased her recent work in Nigeria (Yenegoa) and Paris as well.
By Pinehas Nakaziko