It was an exciting summer for Frank Aghuno, founder and creative director of Fruche. After winning Berlin Fashion Week’s contemporary prize, Aghuno travelled some 3,000 miles to the German capital and held his first international showcase. Still riding that high, the Lagos-based designer was eager to bring the collection home and present it to his Nigerian audience.
This collection asked us to embrace our natural quirks and imperfections. At times, that took on a literal meaning; “handwork can be imperfect in its natural state,” he said, be it naturally occurring holes in the wood carved beads or imperfections from dyeing. “There are quirks everywhere, from the perfectly styled looks to the looks that are more twisted and knotted,” he said.
Inspired by Nigerian boarding school uniforms, gingham featured heavily throughout the collection and came in several iterations, including cotton gingham; aso oke (a Nigerian textile) gingham; beaded gingham; and adire gingham, a traditional resist-dyeing technique. While the silhouettes felt contemporary, traditional crafting techniques remained a key component. From the fabric to the local wood carving, Aghuno was keen to collaborate with artisans based in Nigeria. The cotton used was sourced from Katsina and milled in Nigeria. “Everything is sourced here, and every look was made around the country,” he said, adding that he searched high and low for the right team to help develop the collection (including discovering craftsmen on TikTok). “It just goes to show the richness of our culture and the work we are doing today,” he said.
Standout looks included a satin dress and shirt featuring hand-painted artwork by Aghuno’s twin brother Dricky, an artist based between Lagos and London. At the show’s end, we heard the final look before it appeared on the runway. A model wearing an outfit made out of wood-carved shells walked out as the music drew to a close. The crowd fell quiet as they perched up in their seats and listened closely to the soothing sound of the beads brushing against each other. It was the first time I’ve heard Lagos that silent.
