Ugandan fashion brand, Kai’s Divo Collection, has unveiled the lookbook for its latest collection tagged Chaos. The pieces in the new menswear collection feature capes and tulle fabric, fashion accessories which mainstream East African men are not accustomed to having on their outfits.
Below, the Creative Director of the brand, Abbas Kaijuka explains his inspiration for the collection.
This collection was about everything we think men shouldn’t wear. It was birthed out of a conversation I had had with some of my male clients. They were wondering what would happen if I gave them some of our signature dramatic styles to wear. Men usually come to me for conventional menswear pieces such as suits. Yet, if you’ve been following my brand right from our early days, you know that I’m a rebel when it comes to menswear. In my world, menswear should be more fun and expressive. Putting the collection together was easy, I worked with most of the fabrics that I usually work with for womenswear and married some of the styles together, to create a collection that’s bordering gender-neutral.
My work allows me the opportunity to interface with lots of people, both men and women. From my experience, men are way softer than women. You can measure someone’s strength by the number of risks they are willing to take. Men are not risk-takers when it comes to style. I wanted to showcase the level of risk-taking men ought to be at. I’ve always been fascinated by capes. They are the wings that make superheroes such as Superman and Batman fly. In a cape, I see men who are out there saving the planet. These are generally edgy looks for men. What’s your take on men getting adventurous with shapes and detail? As I said, I’d like men to be more adventurous. I’d like men to take more risks. It doesn’t hurt to think out of the usual box.
See the full collection below
Credits
Brand: @kais_divo_collection
Model: Akram Sempala
Photos by @banjiphoto
Onset assistants: Isaac Baboki/ Thomas Verk
Shot on location at Camouflage