The South African hosted Vodacom Durban July is titled the biggest Racehoursing event on the continent. A swirl of progressive fashion, socialites, celebrities and pure fabulousness, it certainly is a notable tab on the SA-Calendar.
Annually the event incorporates Fashion in more ways than it’s fanciful guests. The
Vodacom Durban July Fashion Experience comprises of competitions and shows as the build-up to the Vodacom Durban July. This includes the Young Designer Award, for KZN-based fashionistas in training at colleges and universities. The attendance at the Vodacom Durban July is over 50 000 people, making it the biggest fashion audience in Africa, talk about a big break!
Over a 120 students representing six fashion design colleges from across the province appeared before the judges to explain their interpretation of the theme “It Is Time”.
Down to 30 semi-finalists, students from the Durban University of Technology dominated the second round of judging at the Vodacom Durban July Young Designer Award by snatching nine of the ten finalist berths.
Judges Terrence Bray, Kathrin Kidger, Sindi Shangase, Zama Mathe and Derrick Mhlongo deliberated for some time before settling on the top ten and concluded that the overall quality of the entries made it a difficult choice.
“What was notable was that the standard of entries was consistently high, which makes it tougher for the judges,”’ said notable Durban Designer Bray.
“the designs were very individual and very well considered and thoughtful,” he added.
Bray said that many of the most striking designs were menswear.
“I will be very surprised if we don’t see a menswear winner from this year’s finalists. They were head-and-shoulders above the ladies wear…we were all pleasantly surprised. ” said Bray.
The ten finalists go through to the two evenings of high fashion at the Vodacom Durban July Fashion Showcase at Greyville Racecourse this weekend. There, another panel of expert judges will study the top ten students and decide on the top three, which will only be revealed on the day of the Vodacom Durban July, Saturday 7 July.
The ten finalists are;
- Nosipho Ntuli (Pietermaritzburg School of Fashion),
- Chané Lange,
- Siphiwo Mkhwanazi,
- Nhlosenhle Cele,
- Tebogo Mokgope,
- Andile Nsele,
- Minenhle Memela,
- Mhlengi Mngoma,
- Georgina Brink,
- Gracious Lubisi
The Vodacom Durban July Young Designer Award is a Gold Circle initiative that started almost two decades ago to give talented design students an opportunity to start a journey towards a career in fashion. Many winners from the Vodacom Durban July Young Designer Award have gone on to show on national platforms such as Durban Fashion Fair, South African Fashion Week, Africa International and Menswear Fashion Week. Many have started their own fashion businesses and studios and are very successful in a highly competitive industry.
For more Vodacom Durban July info, you can have a look at the event website.
