Road To #AFICapetownFashionWeek II - Lake Naivasha Shoot

Posted by Mary Bosibori on March 22, 2018

A fashion week is an exciting phenomenon. At the heart of our campaign was the idea of creation and of life. There are two elements we associate with this and that’s fire and water. Both elements are potent but they could not be more opposed. Fire is intense and instantaneous, while water, though it can be as tempestuous as fire, is more willful, methodical and unhurried. The Hell’s Gate gorge for example, was carved and sculpted by water over years while pieces from the Precious Collection were created and shaped in almost volcanic temperatures. This contrast was important.

We see water not just as the originator of life but as the key ingredient in the sustenance and survival of man. Water has a spiritual and social essence. It is used to cleanse and clarify but it also connects people. Learning such knowledge was exciting during this fashion week. For centuries, people have constructed myths and rituals around water. Whole tribes and cultural practices have emerged out of this mystical yet physical phenomenon. It’s pure and purgative, it is to be found in everything – it’s the common denominator for life.

Beyond its poetic symbolism, the Lake continues the atmosphere of the gorge – it’s just as vast and as moody. Unlike the gorge though, it was very chilly and windy. We got to the lake from Hell’s Gate a few hours before nightfall. We thought it would be quite special to capture the setting sun spill its final rays on the blue-black water. It was. The narrative at the lake was different from the narrative at the gorge. It was more scripted and animated. It continued the contextual exploration of culture but in a more performative way. Too much to learn in one-time fashion week.

Here are some of our favorite moments from the shoot at the lake