South African acclaimed fashion designer Rich Mnisi recently collaborated with Adidas to launch a collection tagged Homeland, which celebrates his heritage and identity and emphasizes his Tsonga roots.
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The new collection combines animal prints, clashing colours, and abstract patterns. The pieces in this new line include tennis apparel, swimwear and running gear, all categories Mnisi has never explored before.
In an interview with PAPER magazine, Mnisi tells the publication:
In the early stages we were thinking it would be more lifestyle looks, but the more we collaborated and explored it felt so right to bring the Rich Mnisi designs and patterns to Adidas sports performance pieces. Together we would design, iterate, and evolve each piece across the space of a few months.
Indeed, the collection features vibrant clashing colours, bright animal prints and abstract details — all patterns and colour palettes that I grew up around. My identity comes through in how they all come together in every piece. There are no limits to how we applied the colours. It’s bold and doesn’t follow any rules.
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Dedicated to celebrating and preserving the environment, Mnisi opted to use partly recycled materials to help end plastic waste. Mnisi’s collection also features classic Adidas footwear lines such as Superstar, UltraBOOST, and Forum, revamped with his distinctive prints.
Mnisi wrote on his Instagram page:
Reflecting our vision for celebrating community, habitat, and homeland environments, hero styles and performance pieces have also been made in part with recycled materials and Parley Ocean Plastic, to help reduce environmental impact.
HOMELAND is a symbol of returning oneself to the ancestral ground she rests on. The personification that is the continent of our birth and the home of humanity. A place that celebrates the spirit of her children. Her roots are the source of life.
Photo Credit: @rich_mnisi