There’s a new designer in town. Making his Lagos Fashion Week debut is Aristide Loua, the Ivorian founder of contemporary ready-to-wear brand Kente Gentlemen. He adds a new charm to the program with a collection that combines traditional and contemporary design. As the name suggests, Loua’s pieces center around the iconic Ghanaian textile Kente cloth. For him, the brand speaks to a broader purpose: preserving and modernizing ancient traditions and practices. The fabrics Loua uses are handmade by weaving communities in Ivory Coast and Ghana, and are given a modern touch through the use of silhouettes that transcend international borders.
Loua comes to Lagos after winning the African Fashion Up incubator program last month, which is sponsored by Galeries Lafayette and Balenciaga, among others. This LFW debut also marked a new chapter for Kente Gentleman as the brand continued to evolve into womenswear. For autumn, Loua has been inspired by a somewhat unusual source of inspiration: Robin Givens’ performance in the 1992 American rom-com Boomerang. “She was seen as a villain in the film, but for me she was my heroine. She was a leader, someone who took charge,” he said backstage, recalling how the character donned a number of looks with oversized jackets, coats and suits. “She created this new archetype of Black women leads and I’m exploring that with this collection.”
This season, Loua introduced a new pattern, which flows effortlessly through the collection, from cropped and oversized blazers to fitted dresses with deep but elegant V-necklines. At the heart of the collection are his signature tailoring, bold, vibrant colors (or as Loua puts it, “royal colors”), as well as hand-knotted organic cotton fabrics from Bassam in Ivory Coast. A standout look paired an asymmetrical open wrap skirt with matching royal blue and pink plaid trousers and a matching double-breasted oversized overcoat. Models walked the catwalk to the soundtrack, “Femme de Feu” by Gadji Celi, a former Ivorian professional footballer turned musician.
While there’s no telling what the next step will be for the brand, could a collaboration with Balenciaga be in the cards? Thanks to his win in African Fashion Up, Loua is currently enjoying mentoring sessions at Balenciaga and says he is “hoping for a small collection with the brand, so fingers crossed.”
