LOCAL STUDENT CREATES ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL OBJECTS IN SOUTH AFRICA WITH LOCALLY PRODUCED MOHAIR

03 December 2014
LOCAL STUDENT CREATES ONE OF THE MOST BEAUTIFUL OBJECTS IN SOUTH AFRICA WITH LOCALLY PRODUCED MOHAIR

Ruth McNaughton, the talented former Mohair South Africa (MSA) bursary student who recently showcased her creative collection at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week, was selected as an Emerging Creative at Design Indaba earlier this year, where her fashion piece was shown on the MSA stand. It was also selected as one of the top ten Most Beautiful Objects in South Africa (MBOISA); a prestigious award for any designer.


The piece, a Mohair and Wool felted cape was created to demonstrate the beauty and purity of using all natural and local resources in a truly sustainable way. Creating traditional felt uses fewer resources than the production of any other textile. To create this felt, only water and soap were used to assist a hand movement which agitated the fibres into a matted fabric. Wool and Mohair are natural fibres abundant in the Eastern Cape. Wool felt is strong but dull and matte in appearance while Kid Mohair adds lightness and a luxurious lustre to the felt. Inspired by the nomadic use of felt for protection, the cape encapsulates the body. This form as well as the specific focus on felt was inspired by tradition and the emotional story behind an object rather than the cold unemotional story of something mass produced.


Each year the country engages with the question of what constitutes beauty. While some may consider beauty an aspect of taste and others know it on sight, beauty becomes far more profound than a visual sensation when design attributes such as social significance, economic impact, usability, sustainability and even humour are thrown into the mix.


Previous winners of this award are: 
2014: Steam 1886 by Adrian Lazaraus
Steam 1886 is a steampunk-inspired short fashion film, produced and directed by Nicky Felbert and Adrian Lazarus.
2013: Pebble Dress by Gavin Rajah


The Pebble Dress from Gavin Rajah’s Spring/Summer 2013 couture
Lindsay Humphreys of MSA added “The MSA team are so proud to be working with Ruth and we are ecstatic that a young creative designer is finding ways to work with Mohair like no one else has. This really represents the versatility of this locally produced fibre and we cannot wait to see what else Ruth has up her sleeve!”


Ruth is currently completing her internship at the MSA head office in Port Elizabeth and is undoubtedly a force to be reckoned with in the highly competitive and ever-changing fashion industry. Watch this space!