Share FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedinWhatsappTelegramEmail 3.2K It’s the second edition of Kibera Fashion Week in the heart of the sprawling area and the place is packed. For six hours, interspersed with pop music performances, hundreds of spectators from Kibera and across the city, watch the diverse collections float by on Saturday. More Articles You Would Love #MODELCRUSH: Meet Nyandeng Makur The Stunning Cute Dark Sudanese Paving A Way For Plus Size Girls Imrpint, Akou & Weiz Dhurm Franklyn @ Africa International Fashion Week 2015, Nigeria “Kibera is full of style,” says designer Avido, who launched the first show last year. “People don’t get to see it because the image they have about Kibera is post-electoral violence, prostitution, drug abuse,” explains the 27-year-old, whose real name is David Ochieng. “We want to show that here, we have style, creativity. What we lack here is opportunities.” Avido was born and bred in Kibera, population about 250,000, where he works. His creations have attracted global stars from Bruno Mars to Beyonce. Boasting a range of partnerships from the Goethe Institute to the European Union, Nairobi Design and the Masai Mbili group, the show has brought together 11 projects from 376 candidates with a wide variety of styles using cotton, jute, wool, pearls and even metal. Empty pockets Designer Pius Ochieng, who is not related to Avido, chose a “Mad Max” post-apocalyptic approach. The 26-year-old harvested computer motherboards, spark plugs, LED lighting, chains, springs and other metal bits from dumps and the streets. Back home he sewed them into clothes and produced a 15-square-metre piece lit up with rose, green and blue neons that was installed in one of the backstreets of Kibera. Helen Wanjiru grew up in Nairobi’s far from wealthy Kawangware district and has covered her clothing with broad pockets, from the back to front, including the legs “The pockets are big but they are empty,” said the 26-year-old, who moved into fashion after working in data processing. “It is an analogy — a lot of youths in Kenya, they have education, they have ideas but they don’t get jobs because there is no opportunity.” The Fashion Week is quite distinct from often stuffy Western shows. The audience, mostly young, loudly acclaims the models and reserves a noisy welcome for designers who come out on to the catwalk. ‘Not just about Paris and Milan’ The extravaganza also offers a chance for local fashionistas to show themselves, often in extraordinary outfits. But in a country used to wearing second-hand goods and a market dominated by expensive foreign imports, the haute-couture fashion world remains remote. Local fashionistas also strut their stuff as the Fashion Week © LUIS TATO / AFP Avido wants to change that. “Many people here have only seen fashion shows on TV,” he said. “We want to show the people what fashion is. “People like our parents used to think that fashion and design was not an art … They used to think that if you were involved in fashion and design, you were like a tailor “And if you were involved in modelling, they would see you maybe like a prostitute.” Project manager Violet Omulo said she attended the show, “to chill, have fun and discover upcoming designers. “African fashion is special and it’s coming up. ‘African fashion is special and it’s coming up,’ says project manager Violet Omulo © LUIS TATO / AFP “We need to promote it with such events so that people know that we can be creative … that it’s not just about Paris or Milan. “Kenya, also in Africa in general, has talented designers.” she said. Read More Like This On Kenya Events UPCOMING PRIORITY EVENTS! VIEW ALL EVENTS To Submit stories Email: submit@FashionGHANA.com or HashTag #FashionGHANA Share FacebookTwitterPinterestLinkedinWhatsappTelegramEmail FashionGHANA Admin FashionGHANA.com is a Fashion PR Company, Events planning & management team as well as Africa's leading Fashion Media House. Get Intouch with us and let's see how we can help you grow. info@FashionGHANAcom More For You Farewell to a Trailblazer: Guinea-Bissau’s Dina Adão Passes Away, Leaving a Legacy On... VIDEO: “Are You Happy Sleeping With A Married Man?” Designer Gracelyn Quansah Walks... Senegalese Fashion Brand Ashara Returns To Ghana To Rock Accra Fashion Week Once... Accra Fashion Week (Ghana) & 50+ Nations Join Forces to Announce BRICS International... Leading US Based Designer Myra Wallace-Walker To Grace The Accra Fashion Week 2024... VIDEO: Watch Nana Tamakloe Speak At The BRICS+ Fashion Summit On How Russia... Nana Tamakloe To Represent Ghana In Russia For The Prestigious International BRICS+ Fashion... The Last Launch of Rhythms on Da Runway 2024 Set for Nkrumah’s Birthday... Exclusive Scoop: Accra Fashion Week 2024 to Host Designers from 10 Countries! It’s... Nairobi Fashion Week 2025 Set To Celebrate Africa’s Fashion Pioneers and Sustainability; Dates...