Kimberley-born designer Thebe Magugu is exhibiting pieces from his Fall/Winter 2023 collection at Paris Fashion Week. At the Sphere Gallery in the Palais de Tokyo, the award-winning 29-year-old designer described “Folklorics”.

“My Fall/Winter 2023 collection is based on folklore stories that I grew up on, stories passed on from generation to generation.

"I think a lot of South Africans will understand binky binky (kids stuffed animals) and stories like the Flying Dutchman. I’ve taken these and symbols from my childhood, some of which were used to instil fear, and interpreted them into a beautiful ready-to-wear collection with a very big emphasis on print.”

Magugu then pointed to several pieces from the collection, saying: “So, if you look at a print like this, it’s actually a shipwreck in progress in the Cape (of Good Hope), along with sailors and mermaids on a pajama-style blouse and matching shawl jacket.

"I have a pearl-white silk dress with roaring tigers lying all around the hem of a pleated skirt and folkloric-inspired cave prints on a pleated short dress and matching rain parka. Another A-line dress has a special smocking woven design, hand stitched by women seamstresses from Madagascar.”

The designer, who won the LVMH Young Fashion Designer Prize in 2019, has ascended to great heights on the international fashion scene in recent years, with collaborations with Adidas, Valentino and Christian Dior.

“Here at the Paris exhibition, is a piece from our collaborative effort with Dior and Charlize Theron,” said Magugu, pointing to a large canvas tote bag with monogram and embroidered African motifs.

Initiated by Maria Grazia Chiuri, creative director of Christian Dior, the collaboration was created in November last year.

“All the proceeds from this project went to grassroots organisations in South Africa through the Charlize Theron Africa Outreach Project (CTAOP). For the collaboration, I designed a scarf, top, skirt, boots, and a bag — and they were only available in Paris, New York, LA, and a very limited selection on the Dior website.”

He added, “While I didn’t meet Charlize (Theron) in person to discuss the project, we had been in contact via Instagram and on a call to discuss it. Between her filming and my commitments, we were able to work on the collaboration digitally with the Dior team and Maria Grazia Chiuri in Paris, who created the samples.”

Magugu has a number of global collaborations on the horizon. “There are quite a few interesting projects and celebrity collabs that are in the works, but I can’t say anything now. Adidas was a year in the making. It’s been a beautiful collection that was inspired by the goodness of home — because as South Africans, I always believe we can create beautiful things out of nothing.

"That really is what a collection is about for me — sort of finding the exquisiteness in the simple, often overlooked things — and I’m looking forward to creating more interesting collections this year.”

Magugu is at Paris Fashion Week with his good friend and fellow acclaimed South African designer David Tlale, who is exhibiting pieces from his latest collection at the Tranoï Showroom, featuring contemporary ready-to-wear accessories and global brands.