An amalgamation of the loafers that touch the ground of Jozi’s CBD and the 15th century Crackow shoes
When art meets art, the birth of something breathtaking takes place. South African fashion designer Thebe Magagu does not just design and create garments. Everything that comes from his artistic expression is deliberate. He considers so much more than aestheticism. This has to do with who he creates for and why he creates. His AW21 collection portrays African Spirituality; his short film Banyoloyi a Bosigo conveyed the messages that the women who came before us as well as healers pass(ed) on. The film tells the story of the womanhood of the Black Sash and the clothes on the sitters’ backs in the film are a result of a collaboration between merino wool and mphepho – a healing substance that Africans use for spiritual purposes. And his shoes footwear proposition? These shoes are also so much more than just ‘things’ you can put on only because they look beautiful. They have a story to tell. These shoes are an amalgamation of the loafers that touch the ground of Jozi’s CBD and the 15th century Cracow shoes. In collaboration with this, his Sisterhood Emblem sits on the boots. He named his amalgamation The Sunday Best Boot.
Why Sunday Best? We think it stems from the history of the shoes that the fanciest men in society wore during the 15th century in Western Europe. Crackows were elongated carrot shaped shoes which resemble the Kick & Boboza shoes worn by pastors in our Johannesburg streets. Kick & Boboza also portray an element of ‘dapperness’ and thus belong in our Sunday Best wardrobes. Thebe Magugu does not just create garments so these are not just boots.
Thebe Magugu’s Sunday Best Boot
