Last Friday night, the “Love The Body You’re In” fashion show paraded a mélange of extremes down the poolside runway of Umubano Hotel in Kacyiru.Logistical confusion joined hands with technical difficulties, and weak lighting accompanied rows of empty chairs as the beats of ‘Move Like Jagger’ meshed with Gyptian’s ‘Hold Yuh’ and the crooning of ‘As Long As You Love Me’ by The Backstreet Boys. The entrance of the emcee compounded discomfort with self-flattering antics that failed to draw more than silent scepticism and sour smiles. Even the impressive vocals of local singer, Shanel, could not salvage the first half of the show from the disjointed lip-syncing of Urban Boyz and the frenzied on-stage booty-shaking of two anonymous young women.Fortunately, fashion came to the rescue. Shimmering silver fabric met wisps of silky lime. Tasselled skirts sashayed past circular neck disks. Structured orange turbans balanced flowing velvet robes. 1950s classics met 21st century practicality, and the Parisian runway met Kigali’s catwalk in creations that fused high-fashion with local patterns and trends.Patrick Muhire, the organiser of the event and featured designer, says that the show’s goal was to boost self-esteem, foster talent, and develop confidence in Rwandan youth.“I want everyone to feel good in his own body,” said Muhire. “You can be pretty in the clothes you put on, so long as you know what goes well with your skin, with your body.”Muhire featured his ‘Inkanda House’ line beside the designs of two other young Rwandese designers, Colombe Ndutiye and Gloria Umugwaneza, as well as the creations of Canadian designer, Johanne St-Louis. Fuelled by a desire to do more than just make clothes, St-Louis launched her line, Dreamyz Loungewear, in Kigali in 2008 and trained a team of twenty Rwandese women to sew and utilize local fabrics to create wearable designs inspired by the fashion of the 1940s and 50s.“Rwanda is an incredibly fashionable country,” said St-Louis, “I work with women that survived the genocide and I think fashion for them can really build their self-confidence and really make them feel like beautiful women again.”St-Louis, Ndutiye, and Umugwaneza’s designs focused on practicality and incorporated subtle notes of African fabric and patterns into classic styles. Muhire, however, commanded the catwalk and brought much-needed drama and excitement with creations that challenged the boundaries of colour, texture, and shape. His thematic use of oranges and browns paired with straw and satin, exhibited the innovative genius of his asymmetrical sleeves, fantastic head ornaments, and sculpted hemlines.“I loved the pieces,” said audience member, Doreen Ruhigisha, “Patrick is really talented, combining European, North American, and African styles. I would wear the dresses off the runway.” Muhire praises the show’s encouragement of talent from young Rwandan designers, musicians, and models. However, he hesitates to call the show a success because he recognises the significant need for improvement.“The lighting wasn’t okay,” he stated bluntly, “The hotel didn’t treat us well. The staff were not as professional as they should have been.”Nevertheless, Muhire is determined to continue in his quest to develop a fashion industry in Rwanda. He believes that fashion is a way of helping Rwandan youth to discover and develop confidence in their talent. “Youth from the poor and the rich all have talents,” said Muhire, “If they are given the chance to develop their talents, they can go somewhere and be something.”
