Dall’inspired by Africa al made in Africa: l’afro-couture vista da occidente

Abstract

Vestimentary choices are vehicles of identity because they create (and influence) the mechanisms of self-representation. When such choices acquire a global dimension, both the will to represent (intentio autoris) and the will to represent oneself (intentio lectoris) take on a central role in the daily discourse of fashion by drawing from the wardrobe of an "other" culture. The case of the so-called “African Fashion" is illustrative in this sense and allows us to question the concepts of "colonialism" and "coloniality" by observing how, over the years, the two terms have been central in generating both a western perception and a western esthetic of Afro-couture.