BY SHARON SIBINDI
Fashion designer and founder of Ganu Designs, Nkanyezi Malunga is preparing an exhibition dubbed Umtshado Ka Mbulumakhasane to be held next Saturday in Matopo.
Umtshado Ka Mbulumakhasane is a hybrid fashion exhibition by Malunga meant to integrate efforts and innovation of women in rural areas with their counterparts in urban areas.
“This idea came out of the efforts to create a platform for women to exhibit and share their skills, their cultural beauty and the knowledge systems,” Malunga told Standard Style.
“While undertaking the project, Vikela iCOVID-19, I met, trained and shared skills with women in Matobo, Tsholotsho, Lupane, Nyam’endlovu and St Peters.”
Malunga said through the experience with the women, she got to be a part of their stories, motivations, lives and realised then how pertinent a platform where these women can create synergies is.
“Umtshado Ka Mbulumakhasane seeks to celebrate women from all walks of life,” she said.
“It at least tries to represent how blended Zimbabwean culture is.
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“The exhibition will not only exhibit immaculate designes created by Nkanyezi Malunga, but will at the same time be this very much needed environment for rural and urban women to share a space.
“It will cultivate a cross cultural exchange; considering the women involved come from very different and diverse backgrounds, cultures and traditions, and figure out means of collaborating their individual and personal effort while working together on this fashion show.”
She said hosting the exhibition in a rural environment, away from the big city was an effort to expose rural communities to the beauty of their cultures and practices.
“This is also an effort to promote rural tourism and the aesthetics it presents,” Malunga said.
“It’s also an effort to tap into indigenous knowledge systems and develop from that experience and develop our communities.
“A deliberate effort has been made to drift away from the conventional fashion shows.
“We want to fuse art with fashion, performance with the runway and to package a worthwhile experience of the creativity and designs of Nkanyezi Malunga.”
