Wanda Lephoto’s AW21 collection, entitled Black Renaissance, is as much a fashion statement as a research project that dives deeply into the impact British colonialism has had on South Africa’s identity and dress practices. Looking specifically at the years 1850 to 1994, which the designer says “represent years of oppression, suppression and liberation, not only of our people but of dreams”, he seeks to understand how today’s melting pot of aesthetics has come to pass, and how representation can be re-imagined freely in future.

“This idea of how craftsmanship from the past has been interpreted in new and modern ways form bigger conversations around where collectively as people we are going and how to get there,” explains the Joburg-based creative and co-founder of The Sartists whose work has been exhibited both at MoMA and Brighton Museum. Lephoto first launched his menswear label in 2016 and has consistently mined heritage style as a way to educate and celebrate his culture.

No doubt LePhoto’s most accomplished offering to date, the designer is also among the curation of Black-owned labels currently stocked at Black Space, a new retail concept at select Nordstrom stores across Canada and the US. A well-deserved nod of recognition for this talent whose designs are as considered as they are fly.