Memories are slippery, unreliable things, often ravaged or rose-tinted by time. But some societies have attempted to pin them down. This season, IAMISIGO founder Bubu Ogisi was particularly inspired by the ‘lukasa’ memory boards developed by the Luba in the 19th century as carved wood studded with beads and shells, which acted as conceptual maps and historical chronicles. She was likewise interested in the ornate headdresses worn by nsɛneɛfoɔ(royal heralds of Asante in present-day Ghana), crafted from colobus monkey hide and embellished with beaten gold repoussé plaques and silver chains. “The first is an object that holds knowledge. The second is a human who carries it,” she explained.
Ogisi’s latest collection—presented in a hazy industrial space in Copenhagen—attempted to bridge the two. High hats and exaggerated shapes alluded to African royalty, believed to be in close contact with the spiritual realm. Heavily embroidered trousers—the colors reminiscent of green mountain ranges, sandy dunes and the bluest water—referenced the way the environment stores memories. And elongated ties made from the brand’s signature beaded textile were decorated with 3D snakes, an animal often associated with memory. “Snakes are one of the oldest animals. They have seen what the earth has seen,” said Ogisi. “In African mythology, the snake is revered and respected. The patterns on its skin function like memory boards.”
With its minimum sustainability standards, Copenhagen Fashion Week has set a shared vision of sustainability. Ogisi, who first showed in Copenhagen last summer when she won the Zalando Visionary Award, is here to expand that vision, and show that sustainability can mean different things in different contexts. For IAMISIGO, it’s about preserving indigenous African traditions, bringing heritage crafts to contemporary consumers, and exploring innovative natural materials. It’s rarely a straightforward process. The brand started harvesting Ugandan bark cloth last November, experimenting with how long they left it underground to find the perfect shade of clay dye. And the artisans it works with needed time to wrap their heads around working with banana and pineapple fibers.
“I love seeing our artisans get excited about new materials and ideas,” said Ogisi. “That’s the most fulfilling thing for me.”
