African fashion rules in British museum show, from chic dashikis to mud-dyed cloth

As I pass along a row of mannequins, the sharply tailored, pale blue cotton dashiki stops me in my tracks. Based on a long-sleeved open-necked, centuries old tribal costume, the garment has a sash draped gently from one shoulder to the other like a Roman toga.

The dashiki, part of the Intsinzi Collection from Rwandan design studio Moshions, first appeared on a catwalk in Kigali five years ago. Its graceful cut and clean lines struck me as youthful, elegant and yet deeply traditional. It would be equally at home in an urban or rural environment on a handful of continents.

Now it is part of a visually stunning exhibition at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum entitled “Africa Fashion.” Read more at NPR.