Noëlla Kalenga

SAPOLOGIE is a visual communication project inspired by urban Congolese street fashion and culture. Particularly, the Congo ‘Sapeurs’ or dandies, that first surfaced and were recognized as the ‘Society of Ambianceurs and Elegant People’ (acronym s.a.p.e.) in the 1920s. Since then, the subculture has become a widespread concept in Congolese homes in the founding regions and in the diaspora alike. Through this zine, I hope to promote fashion outside of a Eurocentric lens, and to challenge the representation of the current fashion media industry through a decolonial perspective. This edition of Bacongo Classique magazine (A shortened version of Brazzaville, the capital of Republic of Congo) is entitled, SAPOLOGIE, a personal reimagining of Congolese fashion with a focus on the values and identity creation it brings to its people.