A SPECIAL SHOWCASE in honor of late South African designer Quiteria Kekana, who used to dress American female pop musician Beyonce Knowles before his death in April, has been put on the agenda of the forthcoming Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week slated from May 16-21. The acclaimed designer was on the lineup of top designers who confirmed their participation at the second edition of the fashion event in Kigali but, unfortunately, died last month after succumbing to cancer. Quiteria made his name known under his former partnership with George Malelu, with the pair creating a famous couture label in Johannesburg known as Quiteria & George. They created unforgettable garments for Mzansi celebs, including Miss South Africa contestants. In 2019, working with actress and fashion designer Enhle Mbali Mlotshwa, they designed Beyoncés gown for the Global Citizen Concert 2019: Mandela 100 performance among many other great fashion moments. The duo parted ways in 2019 to end a five-year successful partnership and embark on their own journey in fashion. “Our brand Q&G was a vehicle for both us to finally venture into solo careers, we strategically set up our brand in 2014 and we agreed that we would be together for 5 years, we realized that at the time the was a gap for a duo brand and for fresh ideas and thats whats what we offered,” George told The New Times commenting on the pair’s separation. George was expecting to fly together with his former partner ahead of the fashion even in Kigali but his death did not allow. As someone with whom he shared five successful years in fashion, Quiteria’s death still shocks George that he decided to change the collection that he was expected to showcase in Kigali to the collection the duo worked on together as part of a special tribute to Quiteria during the event. “Quiteria and I used to love participating at fashion weeks a lot, it was the journey that was the most exciting, from conceptualizing the collection and bringing it into existence and the mayhem backstage and finally to the first model on the runway. We enjoyed that so much and as a result I thought I should honor him by giving him his last showcase by going back into Quiteria and Georges archives, I believe his spirit is around me and hes always in my heart,” George told The New Times in an interview. “People anticipating to attend the Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Kigali can expect some of the pieces that we created together and lastly I have recreated all the showstoppers from our previous fashion weeks,” he added. During their time together, the duo, besides Beyoncé, dressed almost every A-list celebrity in South Africa and some of the big Nigerian celebrities as well, including Toke Makinwa, Stephanie Cooker, Yemi Alade to mention a few. In terms of shows, they showcased at Durban Fashion Fair every year, AFI both Johannesburg and Cape Town in addition to a solo showcase in Paris in 2016. Before the special showcase at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Kigali, participants will observe a minute of silence to pay tribute to late designer Quiteria who will be felt for years as a huge loss to the fashion industry not only in South Africa but in Africa and the globe at large as pointed out by fashion event Executive Director, Daniel Ndayishimiye. “When George sold the idea to us, we immediately supported it. Quiteria was the pride of the African fashion industry and that’s why we will observe a minute of silence in honor of his contribution to African fashion,” Ndayishimiye told this publication. Wherever it takes place, Mercedes Benz Fashion Week attracts some of the arguably best fashion designers on the continent and globally. The annual international fashion event, which last took place in Kigali, returns after almost two years because of covid-19 restrictions. A total of 27 fashion designers have confirmed their participation at this year’s edition in Kigali. Mercedes Benz Fashion week is rated as one of the biggest fashion week events on the globe, and Kigali was the second city in Africa to host Mercedes Benz Fashion Week after Accra, Ghana. Other cities that host the Mercedes-sponsored event include Istanbul (Turkey), Brisbane (Australia), Mexico, Malaysia and Tbilisi (Georgia) among others.
