Despite their monochrome palette, photographs of the Mbari Club in 1960s post-independence Nigeria simply radiate vibrancy. Poets, writers and musicians gathered in this now legendary space brimming with creativity and hope. Fela Kuti, Chinua Achebe, Wole Soyinka, Christopher Okigbo, Uche Okeke and Ezekiel Mphahlele all passed through. So while andVerv’s Ebun Oduwole and Winnie Awa celebrate the exuberance of that period, they also ask, where were the women?

This was the question at the core of this new label’s impressive London Fashion Week debut. Part of the British Fashion Council’s DiscoveryLAB, andVerv set their SS20 collection in a reimagining of the Mbari club, complete with stellar soundtrack and art covered walls. In this reincarnation however, the forgotten women of this era got their moment to shine.

Models were dressed in deceptively simple silhouettes in a soft palette of rich bronze, burnt red and elegant sorbet shades. Hitting that sweet spot of being sartorially interesting – think unexpected cutouts to the back, luxe fabrics and oversized lapels – and commercially viable, the andVerv offering might have found inspiration in the past but this was a forward looking and confident capsule wardrobe.

The show notes said, “Inspired by the women before us, our starting points were our parents’ dusty photo albums, old photographs by Ricardo Rangel and Jean Depara – photographs which offered a glimpse into the women hidden behind our mothers’ hushed tones”. We can’t help but think this duo’s respective mothers will struggle to keep their tones hushed as they exclaim their pride for this beautiful collection from their self-assured daughters.

Read our recent interview with the andVerv founders here

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Published on 26/09/2019