The 2023 Handmade Contemporary Fair recognises African women artisans and their contribution to the luxury economy
Africa’s premier artisanal luxury fair, the upcoming Handmade Contemporary Fair (HmC Fair), is taking place from 1-3 September at Melrose Arch in Johannesburg. With over 90% of the 100 artisans displaying their craftsmanship and design being women and the fair itself being fully women-run, this event is celebrating the creativity and entrepreneurship of African women and showcasing the finest handmade creations from across the continent.
“Women play a significant role across a vast range of artisanry and craftsmanship in Africa, which is an essential part of the continent’s cultural and economic landscape,” says Lesley Hudson, Head of Operations for HmC Fair. “Over the last 17 editions of HmC Fair, we have witnessed a growing interest in handmade and sustainable products worldwide, a movement that is creating increasing opportunities for African craftswomen to access both local and international markets”. She adds that HmC Fair is the ideal collaborative ecosystem to recognise these incredible women and to celebrate and showcase their talent and contribution to the luxury economy.
This year’s HmC Fair encompasses ‘Where Handmade African Luxury Meets the Future’. The Fair advocates for the importance of protecting handmade industries and their ability to preserve culture, create wealth for communities that source or make the goods – while recognizing that the technological advances of AI and technology can aid, expand and amplify these products and brands.
“Our emphasis is on supporting local entrepreneurs who create jobs to access a market that sustains employment through production,” says Hudson, adding that this approach is more sustainable in enabling access to the market. Most of our entrepreneurs record making at least 60% of their annual turn over from the 4 days of HmC Fair.
LERATO MOTAU (FIBRE TEXTILES)
One of the vendors at this year’s HmC Fair is Fibre Textile Artist, Lerato Motau from Orlando West in Soweto, whose mashangane (bright neon) colours and vivid creations reflect her Shangaan ancestry. Despite her dyslexia, Motau obtained a Fine Arts and Teaching Diploma from the Johannesburg Art Foundation.
“My work represents me as a person, because I am able to speak my journey of dyslexia using visual perception as communication – no words, but a story that speaks volumes in terms of how you look at the work and how it makes you feel,” says Motau who was drawn to embroidery as a way to interpret how she sees the world. “I can heal myself in terms of each and every stitch, which represents my emotions and my healing. When you use your hands, it becomes authentic. It’s like I am stitching my wounds and it represents me as a person telling my story”.
Motau’s work has been commissioned throughout the country, including embroidered public artwork for the Vaal Campus of the North West, the Leonardo Hotel in Sandton and in Vilakazi Street, Soweto. One of her long term projects, Friendship Skirts, which she made with the individual characteristics of many of her female friends in mind, have been shown on a documentary in Beijing, and later worn as part of a fashion show in Johannesburg.
LEIGH AVENUE (JEWELLERY)
Leanne Shakenovsky’s love for creating jewellery began in her early teens, and she remembers sitting on dusty floors, trawling through endless troughs of old findings to create what would be her first jewellery designs. Later, drawing on her inspiration from her travels to India, Zanzibar and South East Asia, as well as her local South African heritage, Shakenovsky began selling her pieces to friends, family and local boutique stores. Leanne is the visionary behind Leigh Avenue, a design house of handcrafted jewellery also at this year’s HmC, with each Leigh Avenue piece still personally designed and curated by Shakenovsky herself.
“So many women are so incredibly talented and there are so many opportunities open for them to use their craft and artisanship, skill and passion. It is vitally important for women in the creative sector to support each other, we know what we all go through and what a day in the life of many of these creative women mean, and we need to dominate,” Shakenovsky says.
About the upcoming HmC Fair, she says that customers will be able to meet the faces behind so many of the online orders and have conversations about ideas and their opinions on the various pieces. “Because we are primarily an online store, I am really looking forward to meeting customers who are excited about our jewellery pieces. Here they will be able to touch, try on and feel textures as well as mix, match and stack bracelets and necklaces”.
N.BE.LOVE HOMEWARE (DECOR)
Self-taught handcraft artifacts maker, Neo Mutuma, is another woman displaying her craft at HmC Fair this year, a craft which tells a story of a giant life pivot. From the editorial world of publishing in the glossy magazine space to finding a new passion in moulding beautiful things for the home, Mutuma’s lifelong dream to create her own homeware came to life during lockdown in 2020, when she established N.Be.Love.
SARI FOR CHANGE (SUSTAINABLE FASHION)
Sari for Change creates beautiful, timeless pieces that are both stylish and socially conscious, with each piece carefully crafted from pre-loved saris, giving them a second life and reducing land-fill waste in the process. This is a sustainable fashion brand where style meets sustainability, and will be yet another of the brands inspiring conscious consumerism at this year’s HmC Fair.
Founder Rayana Edwards says that to be part of HMC Fair means that we are part of the new ecosystem in building new narratives in design and most importantly to include the business of fashion and design.
“Last year was the first time we participated at HMC fair. It was a beautiful experience in introducing our brand, very well received and this year we are wishing to grow and build from this and to continuously connect with clients who at this time choose to shop locally and more consciously. Also, always excited to see the new crop of designers’ come through, innovating through technology and art, landing it into the new world,” Edwards says.
She says that the more platforms we have such as HmC Fair, the bigger the chances of building our brands and reaching the success for everyone in the value chain. “Upskilling and skills transfer now lie with us, we cannot wait around for leaders to do this. We must lead!”
BELLE TOGS (FASHION)
Mother of 2 and full time graphic designer at the time, Keke Moeca started Belle Togs in 2021.
This South African clothing brand which will be exhibiting and selling their range of dresses, kimonos, sets and accessories at HmC Fair this year, was inspired by the beauty of the human spirit and love for classic style and creates classic and versatile clothing locally crafted with the finest fabrics.
ZULU MIEN (FINE JEWELLERY)
Zulu Mien is a social enterprise started to support rural women artisans, with a group
of women makers who create fine African jewellery, each with their own exclusive collections. This collaboration ensures that these artisans have consistent orders for their products and a continual stream of income from craft. These collections will be on display at HmC Fair this year.
Other incredible female makers at this year’s HmC Fair include:
Nahla Sleepwear (South Africa)
Dressing to meet your dreams with scrumptious sleepwear, satin-smooth, ultra-comfortable and soft to the touch is what Nahla Sleepwear is all about. Founder Makori Mosiuoa says that as a little girl, they couldn’t afford much but her mother always made an effort to buy her a beautiful nightie or a set of pyjamas – it was her love language. This is the essence of why Mosiuoa started Nahla Sleepwear and this is why they will continue to do their very best to constantly improve and make beautiful pyjamas that tell a story, and that each touch point and interaction feels like love.
Helon Melon (South Africa)
Founded by Helen Gibbs in 1995, Helon Melon was born out of an idea to service an industry that was limited in product design, style, fabric choice and innovation. In the early stages, fabrics were easily sourced from local suppliers who understood the need to supply product that was manufactured from natural fibres and fabrics that had surface interest. From the first few decades were very much dedicated to homeware and lifestyle design, to a diversion into apparel, Helon Melon has grown from being a local supplier to being sold in many countries including Italy, Germany, and England.
One of Each (South Africa)
Cape Town-based ONEOFEACH is owned by mother-and-daughter design duo Tamburai and Pauline Chirume, whose collaborative journey has led to the creation of a strong brand, which embraces their love of ethnic prints, leather and all-natural fibres and results in handbags and accessories that are pieces of art. With their belief that the customer is an individual who is drawn to a piece for a reason, they make only one item in each style per size.
Mangishi Doll (Zambia)
Mangishi Doll was established in 2012 by Zambian Fashion Designer Kapasa Musonda. A member of the Forbes 30 under 30 List and passionate creative, Kapasa embarked on her fashion journey at age 17, winning a full scholarship to study Fashion Design at FIDM in Los Angeles, California. In 2012, she returned home to Zambia and began working on the MD label and its first official collection ‘Maganizo’ was released in the Fall of 2016 giving the brand its first International breakthrough. Since then MD has resonated with different cultures & people around the world and has dressed Influencers and celebrities such as Angela Basset, Susan Kelechi Watson and Vonneta Stewart.
Adele Dejak (Kenya)
Adele Dejak is home to luxurious African-inspired jewellery, handcrafted in the heart of Kenya. Their design aesthetic is a strong African Heritage, reinterpreted into modern/contemporary, at times minimal, brand-new shapes. Behind each of their creations is a promise of a sustainably sourced and ethically made.
Mille Collines (Rwanda)
The Mille Collines story begins in Kigali in 2008 when the paths of two passionate women crossed: Antoinette, a Rwandan seamstress and Ines, a Spanish design student. Kigali is known as ‘le pays des mille collines’ which means the land of a thousand hills in French. Both women shared the same vision; a belief that uniting talents would lead to creating groundbreaking products in Africa. Ines’ best friend Marc joined her in Rwanda and with Antoinette’s mentorship they created the first apparel collection. They believe that joy can be transferred into an object when it is made with love and care, and this is transmitted through the hands that contribute to making their products.
“These are just some of the incredible women showcasing their talent and drive at this year’s HmC Fair, a lighthouse and enabler for luxury goods and products in Africa. We are putting women-owned brands on the map both locally and internationally and creating an enabling environment that propels women forward,” says Gugu Nkabinde, a beacon of Africa’s fashion and retail industry who partners with Lesley Hudson as a Brand and Experiential Design Strategist for HmC Fair.
From fashion, accessories, and homeware, to furniture, foods, wine and all things gorgeous, bespoke and luxury, this year’s HmC Fair is one of the most anticipated diary events of the year. HmC Fair is owned by WOKEafrica – a 100% black owned, 100% female-run business that is committed to elevating African entrepreneurs who play in the high-networth space.