The Colour of a Warrior
Ugandan designer Gloria Wavamunno uses the colors of th earth to create a warrior's wardrobe
Earth WarriorDesign Indaba
The spirit of Uganda invoked in fashion
Ugandan fashion designer Gloria Wavamunno is influenced by the history and stories from her home country. Using the earth tones she associates with Uganda, she created a bespoke jumpsuit which evokes the elements to capture the spirit of her country and its people.
About Gloria Wavamunno
Gloria is a Ugandan fashion designer and the art director and founder of Kampala Fashion Week. She is also a founding member of the Fashion Council of Uganda. Wavamunno founded her own, non-binary, fashion label called Gwavah in 2009.
Earth WarriorDesign Indaba
Explaining her work, Gloria states: "My Ugandan Earth Warrior jumpsuit is inspired by the essence of Uganda and its natural energies. This warm, mustard-yellow color can represent the sun, the earth, the sand. I am playing with the elements to capture the spirit of my country."
''This colour can exist in all the elemental states. The tones of the jumpsuit are a mix of the colour of the soil and the sun. All of life comes from these; the earth gives birth to all greenery, fuelled by the rays of the sun.''
Earth WarriorDesign Indaba
There is balance in the texture, colours and materials that make up the garment: the patterns in the jumpsuit represent femininity, though there are elements of both the masculine and feminine in the piece.
The jumpsuit is not gendered and can be worn by everyone; it pays homage to the kings and queens of our history and our mythology, who would sometimes marry people of the same sex.
Earth WarriorDesign Indaba
The headpiece, with its triangular pattern of shells, represents the headdresses worn when entering a holy place, or donned before rituals are carried out.
We are all warriors
We are each warriors, battling our internal demons. We are all engaged with a deep and spiritual battle within ourselves, but if we can win this battle and love and value ourselves then we can be better mentors to others. — Gloria Wavamunno
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