Fashion's prints charming, Laduma Ngxokolo, turns his hand to homeware
The international success of Laduma Ngxokolo’s growing brand — MaXhosa by Laduma — is due to a deeply grounded sense of who he is, where he’s come from and his big-picture plan
Laduma Ngxokolo's star is on the rise, and though most South Africans know him primarily for his dynamic street-meets-craft knitwear, which has put the instantly recognisable Xhosa aesthetic on the world map, he's a man of many facets.
A speaker at the recent Conde Nast International Luxury conference, held this year in Cape Town, and headlining 100% Design SA 2019 as its feature designer, he's considered a symbol of contemporary African design — whose vision includes his heritage in a fresh and relevant way.
So it makes sense that through his brand MaXhosa he's applied this beyond clothing and is heading down a broader new path. His homeware has the same graphic appeal and vibrant colour as his knitwear and accessories - the simple geometrics and bold hues lending themselves perfectly to textiles and wallpapers, products he's exploring now. And he's enjoying the relative freedom that homeware offers too.
"Designing homeware was an easy transition - it simply allowed the patterns to evolve and to live beyond the clothes. Fashion can be restrictive; you're limited by seasons and themes. Homeware allows us more freedom to play with colour," he says.