Kristin-Lee Moolman
28 HATS FOR LAMU celebrates the transformative power of creativity – how the ordinary becomes extraordinary as the imagination works its magic.
The photographs in this exhibition were made on the sub-equatorial island of Lamu in Kenya, in February 2020, by South-African photographer Kristin-Lee Moolman and French-British stylist Louise Ford, who spent much of her childhood between Zimbabwe and Kenya.
The portraits document the competitors in the 2020 version of the Shela Hat Contest, a biannual event in which Lamunians foster environmental empathy. Entrants create hats from material that would otherwise be thrown away, in a celebration of recycling and repurposing.
The results are playful, joyous and often reflect the Lamunian experience – this year, for example, Masha Birya’s entry depicted a dhow boat typical of the region, whilst Sarah Wanjiku created a palm tree hat using husks gathered from the trees themselves. There are also hats that are more abstract in their design – Mohammad Abud’s diamond lattice string and braid creation functioned symbolically to reflect the coming together of black and white culture; Rose Nakami’s winning hat appeared like a translucent, aqua-coloured halo, scattered with a constellation of sun-hued plastic bottle tops.
“ ‘This project is about optimism, empowerment and paying homage to the creative vision of the artists of Lamu.’ ”
Some entrants are professional artists, whilst others are doctors, business owners, students or fisherman. All exhibit a sensitivity towards the beauty of the Lamu environment, its ecosystem and the interrelationship of humans and the natural world.
Moolman says: ‘This project is about optimism, empowerment and paying homage to the creative vision of the artists of Lamu.’ Ford adds: ‘Community and environment are deeply important to me. I believe this project embodies the two’. A percentage of proceeds from sales of 28 HATS FOR LAMU will be donated to the New Leaf drugs rehabilitation centre.
Kristin-Lee Moolman grew up in South Africa during the political transition between the Apartheid and Nelson Mandela, which greatly influenced her work. She explores the social and political realities of Africa by deconstructing traditional representations of masculinity and femininity, promoting powerful new identities as counter-narratives to current stereotyped, idealized imagery.
Louise Ford spent her childhood living between Zimbabwe and Kenya, those formative years inspirited in her a desire to story-tell via the medium of image making, exploring styling as a powerful form of self-expression. After several years at Dazed magazine in London she is now based in Paris working as a freelance stylist and consultant.
