Top designers show off resort-inspired collections at Zeitz MOCAA

Model in Gavin Rajah clothing CTRC.
Image: Supplied.

It’s full glamour ahead with final preparations in full swing as the Zeitz Museum of Contemporary Art Africa (MOCAA) in Cape Town readies to host its first local runway show. While in Joburg this weekend it’s all about Kelly Rowland, Tems, and Thebe Magugu, on the other side of Mzansi the 4th annual Cape Town Resort Collections (CTRC) will see designers from Taibo Bacar to Laduma Ngoxolo and Mzukisi Mbane parading exquisite resort-inspired collections.

Among the extraordinary artwork and scenic sights, the gallery’s corridors will also see the runway return of designers Thula Sindi and Fundudzi by Craig Jacobs. 

SMag caught up with fashion designer and founder of CTRC, Gavin Rajah, about his new collection, debut makeup line, and more:

Where did the concept of CTRC come from? 

I wanted to create a platform for designers who wanted to show but were not comfortable showing on other well-known platforms. I wanted to create something that was largely shaped by the designers themselves.

What inspired your latest collection that was showcased last month at African Fashion Institute (AFI) in Johannesburg?

I love Johannesburg and its energy. The idea around the collection was about friendship and the kind of things that bind people – experiences. To look at it through clothing, it was about re-configuring old denim from Pick n Pay and remaking things from that. Taking different pieces of clothing and putting it back together and creating a new narrative and making pieces fit.

Your namesake make-up line, how did this tangent from your fashion line come about?

The best accessory to clothing right now is make-up. It’s something that you wear with your clothing and is essential to finishing off any look. I’ve focused on colors; nail liquors, lip shades, eye shadows, highlighters, those. Hopefully, it will be a seasonal collection and it will be high fashion.