African tribe lost in India

Somali sisters journey from civil war to New York fashionistas

New York (CNN) -- Two Somali women are making a splash in the New York fashion scene, designing a range of clothes that take their inspiration from Africa.

Identical twins Ayaan and Idyl Mohallim were born in Somalia, but left for the United States aged nine to escape the civil war.

They grew up in Washington D.C. before going to college -- one in Boston and the other in Michigan. After graduation they headed for New York City and set up fashion label Mataano -- the Somali word for twins.

Seeing that New Yorkers were wedded to wearing black, the Mohallim twins were determined to brighten up the city with a splash of African color.

Ayaan told CNN, "We came into this industry and realized that with a lot of the clothes that we saw, everything was black.

"You know in Africa, with everything you wear it's almost like the peacock theory -- people want to be noticed, they want to stand out.

Gallery:

"So the world's taking notice. It's not about designers going to Africa for a safari and coming back with an animal print and big bangles and saying 'here's your one trick pony.'

"Africa is not a homogenous place -- it has different cultures. So now there's a medium for it and there's more designers that are traveling abroad and bringing that aesthetic to this market."

The pair have been in business for less than two years, but they are taking inspiration from the entire continent of Africa, drawing on the traditional dress of specific regions and subcultures. Their childhood in Somalia has left a lasting impression that can be seen in their designs.

The Somali woman has strength and we want to evoke this through our collection.

--Ayaan Mohallim

RELATED TOPICS

• Somalia
• Fashion and Style
• Africa

"The Somali woman has strength and we want to evoke this through our collection," said Ayaan. "So we design really flowy, beautiful dresses that have a nice strong print that showcases the strength these women really have."

"For our Spring 2010 collection we also used Somali references and inspirations," said Idyl.

"There was one silhouette that's worn by every woman in Somalia, called a 'dirac.' We didn't want to recreate it too much, we just wanted to introduce that and say 'it's relevant and you can wear it in a western culture.'"

But while they are fusing traditional African clothing with modern Manhattan sensibilities, they have to be sensitive to cultural differences in their more conservative homeland.

"We got a lot of feedback from Somalis everywhere," said Idyl. "A lot of our consumers and fans are writing us and saying 'you guys are making beautiful clothes but some of them are not modest enough, especially not for the Somali culture and Somali woman.'

"So that's something that we really had to pay attention to and try to create something for everyone, while staying true to the collection."

The twins' new collection will debut on runways in South Africa this summer during Africa Fashion Week. They say it's a big step in the right direction, but they have their sights set on expanding even further.

99-year-old graduate fights Africa's brain drain

"In the next few years we definitely want to expand our business," said Idyl. "We want to go global. We want to be in Europe, the Middle East, and especially Africa.

"We want to speak to the global consumer -- and not just for women -- we've been getting a lot of requests from men."

As they grow beyond the boutiques of Brooklyn and Manhattan, the twins believe their story is one that resonates with people from all backgrounds.

"We're bringing a positive story and people connect with that because we're following the American dream and we've overcome a lot of obstacles," said Idyl.

"We've had to assimilate, but at the same time there are so many immigrants, so many different individuals doing that throughout the Diaspora, throughout Africa, so there is a positive story that needs to be told.

"I think it's really refreshing to hear a different side of Somalia ... that we're not all pirates!"

Mark Tutton contributed to this report

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African Masks and African Masking Traditions

I have no doubt that within the roots of Caribbean culture are these and many more African Traditions.

Behind the Masks in Mexico

Image via Wikipedia

I came across this video surfing about Mexican masking traditions and thought to my self there is a lot of African influence in there, take a look at the video its a lesson in history too...



"Masked festivals in Mexico are a thriving tradition; their unbroken evolution can be traced from the pre European period to the present, including African influences introduced by slaves of the Spanish. BEHIND THE MASKS IN MEXICO, exhibited at the Museum of International Folk Art in Santa Fe, is the most comprehensive museum exhibition on Mexican masked dance in the United States. Curators, exhibition designers, a camera crew and consultants spent thousands of hours in six Mexican villages researching the festivals of Carnival, Holy Week, Corpus Christi, Day of the Dead Christmas, and Patron Saints Day. The Museum of International Folk Art houses a large Latin American collection, including this country's largest holding of Mexican folk art and one of this nation's largest museum collections of Mexican masks. PROFILE: Miguel Caro Albuquerque dancer, specializing in traditional and contemporary dance. Here Caro dances several Mexican folk dances with his usual high energy and love of Mexican folk life. Orginally broadcast on New Mexico PBS station KNME."

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Mas Man and Mas Man Redux, Two for your Trinidad Carnival Collection

When Mas Man the movie premiered in London last November I leaped at the opportunity to  not just to see the move/documentary but to meet Dalton Narine,  because even as a child I always associated the Dalton Narine name to one of my greatest sources of information of anything Minshall.

So I went to the London premier of Mas Man and thought ‘YES! Narine just did it again!’

Now to tell the truth the festival cut of Mas Man is great, for me it was an analysis of Minshalls contribution to Mas made by those who had the opportunity to work with him learn from him, and define his massive contribution to the culture to Trinidad and Tobago ‘s Carnival, through the art form Mas.

I loved it! The only problem I had with it is that growing up watching Minshalls Mas with my own eyes I felt I needed to see more, my childhood memories reignited by Mas Man festival cut demanded more than 87 minutes that Mas man gave me.

The next time I spoke to Dalton Narine he told me about the director’s cut, that it was shorter than the festival cut but more coverage, MORE MAS.

And so about a week later I sat watching Mas Man and then Mas Man Redux, back to back, and trust me, Mas Man is great, but Redux is a whole different creature. While this director’s cut does feature some of the festival footage, there is a whole lot more Mas, probably all of Minshalls presentations are packed into this DVD, and the story is not just told by those who have worked with him and played in his band, a lot of the story is told by Peter Minshall himself.

From the empowerment and inspiration he got from Sailor Mas, in the beginning to  what inspire ‘This is Hell and the band RED, to the feelings he sometimes gets when he looks at his life in retrospect in the end, Mas Man Redux, is simply the second half of a fantastic voyage into the Mas, and Mind of Minshall. I will recommend it to anyone who wishes to learn more about Mas, to get these DVD’s, anyone who wants to know more about Peter Minshall, get these DVD’s  or if you are simply a collector of Carnival history, get these DVD’s , you simply won’t regret it.

Mas Assassin.

A little trivia for you guys Peter Samuel’s body suit for the Sacred and the Profane was hand painted by Peter Minshall while Samuel was wearing it and it took 61/2 hours to complete.


If you wish to see more of Peter Minshall's work or read more critiques on the movies see the Minshall Mas Man fan page on facebook.


If you want to purchase MASMAN go to the website here.   

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