Crafting Creative Context with 6 of Nairobi’s Most Impressive Fashion Stylists
Curating a look, pulling a fit, and impressing the masses on the daily with your personal style is a feat not many are capable of taking on. But the artists and fashion folks we spoke to for this piece do it with ridiculous regularity.
For many who exist outside or even on the fringe of the fashion world, styling is a job that isn’t really understood. These are artists who use clothes to create narrative and weave together ideas using their specific eye for beauty and visual imagery. On the set of a photoshoot or music video, these are the people, alongside the set designer, that tie together the visual vision of a project. Finding ways to best highlight their clients best features. Many of the people I spoke to work both commercially and on personal projects, but all got to where they are now by how much art has moved them across their various life experiences.
Read through as we talked to some of the most impressive Kenyan clothing curators, working right now.
Annette Michatha (she/they)
Birthed from a fashion forward mother, Annette Michatha was born to be a fashion icon. They started embracing clothes as a medium of expression early in life. Inspired by their mother’s mastery of colour theory and composition, Annette began to piece outfits together based on much of her mother’s influence.
Their first foray into professionally telling stories with clothes, came in 2022. Annette was always interested in being in front of the camera, modelling was their initial first love. Being able to become the canvas on which stories were told was the larger dream they were chasing, until a visionary friend opened up their scope. Annette was roped onto the set of a music video and told that their job that day was to style the video’s stars. At first it was daunting, but soon they found themself in a flow state. Up until this point Annette had only had fun constructing outfits and building characters for themselves, but this project became the portal to which they would soon find themselves bringing other’s visions to life. From music videos, to photoshoots, Annette’s portfolio has been growing exponentially over the last 2 years.
In her growth as an artist, Annette has remained grounded in a sustainable relationship with fashion. Recognising that the fashion industry creates approximately 97 million tonnes of waste annually, Annette does not believe in buying a whole new outfit for every project. In their own way, Annette is doing their part to curb their impact on the environment and their pockets. They use a simple system to figure out whether an outfit or an item of clothing was worth the purchase. Annette calculates the “cost per wear”. They try to calculate how many outfits they can make from each individual article of clothing. If the number is less than 5 then they leave it behind.
Annette is an artist determined to continue growing, constantly opening up their mind to new inspiration, and partnering with other creatives to stretch their skills. They are a young creative powerhouse in the making.
William Malawi (He/Him)
William Malawi is a Kenyan born, U.S based creative stylist and photographer. Starting out with a passion for photography William was not particularly interested in creating looks. But life comes at you fast, and he didn’t yet have a camera. In need of a different form of expression, William opened up his horizons to the world of creative styling. His work is indicative of a strong vision and his bold expressions of colour and shape show off his willingness to have fun and be experimental with his work. William worked as a stylists for approximately one year before he’d saved up enough money to buy his own camera and now be fully responsible for the narratives he could tell. William was aware that having the skill to carefully craft his vision and then also capture the ideas and bring them to life on his own was a blessing. The last 8 years have seen him grow not only on social media where he shares his work, but as well as put his work up in galleries across the world.
William works solely for his own personal expression. Not guided by any pursuit of income or “job security” William, relies on his work to express his creativity. He meticulously plans out series and projects, spending months acquiring all the clothes and props he needs over in the U.S before flying back home to Kenya to work with models and artists based here.
His desire to showcase the beauty of the African continent and highlight the richness of his people is what brings him back to execute his vision. His ever-present passion to push the boundaries and explore his own creativity are what keep him going while he’s working. Especially on projects he is aware might never make him any of his own spending back.This talented creative is experimenting with photography and visuals in a way not often seen in Kenya. Using his skills in this way, allow him to tackle more than one mission at once, inspiring others to express themselves as well as giving himself room to continue birthing newer and greater ideas.
Clinton Okanga (He/Him)
This creative director and stylist started working before he even knew he was working. Also encouraged by his stylish mother, a young Clinton always admired clothes and how they made him feel. The young man could be seen ‘feeling’ himself as he strolled around his hometown of Bondo in Western Kenya, showing out in an outfit he had constructed on his own. The practice of composing a fire fit gave him a sense of pride. He knew that his swag preceded him in the community. These moments are what pushed him into professionally styling when in college.
The creative director that exists within him definitely affects the stylist. Clinton understands that his work with clothes and fashion will usually stem from a larger creative vision he’s interested in realising. The clothes exist as a part of the puzzle that he is completing on the go. Anything he sees can exist as inspiration for a shoot. A rock, a tree, a basket, can all spark the creativity that he needs to begin pulling a look. This method of observing fashion with a wider lens, truly began when he started consuming art on a broader level. Movies, TV, art all shape how he now chooses to tell stories.
This broader perspective is what guides much of his work with the artist collective Urban Pitchaz. Clinton works alongside photographer and stylist in his own right, Edwin Maina, model Ali Budz, and model and creative director Jordan to pull together visually fascinating and thematically gripping photo and video shoots. Clinton is always working on something, a music video here, an artist shoot there, he is excited to spread his wings and stretch his skill as far as he can. One of his most recent endeavours was the development of his own fashion brand, “Rabalakwasi”. The first limited collection, “From my mom to you”, was created in partnership with his original inspiration, his mother. Together the two of them brought together a line of wool accessories that his mother crocheted. The hats, and headgear were modelled after the seat covers always found in his childhood home, that his mother would also crochet for the house. He created this line, with the intention of allowing its wearers to feel the same beauty and swagger that he emulated as a small child. With elements of his home this piece takes a piece of his history and cements it outside of himself.
Rosemary Wangari (she/her)
Rosemary Wangari has always been an artist. From a young age she would experiment and explore with any expressive visual media she could. From drawing, to garment construction, to baking, Rosemary extends her production far and wide. The talented designer started young, designing her own original characters and curating each one their own unique outfits full of colour and creativity. As she grew, her mother would often help her bring her ideas to life and create custom clothing for her barbies. Weaving a story through clothing has been a lifelong ambition for this young stylist.
Rosemary studied art in university and really honed in on fashion as her focus in the last two years of school. From concept to final product she was able to replicate her early experiences as a child on a larger scale. After graduating, she began posting her creations and styling work from school on social media and from the reception felt she was ready to dive into the world professionally. A post covid world opened up and Rosemary began taking on commercial styling projects.
Like many of the other artists I spoke to, Rosemary can be found sourcing inspiration from everywhere. Her friends, art, nature all inspire her work and the narratives she weaves. Immersing herself in a variety of cultures, picking the most beautiful elements to add character to her outfits or the pieces she’s designing herself and the infusion of her own artistic vision are what make Rosemary such a gripping artist to observe. Her work is both futuristic and grounded in her own special flavour. In her personal work, she aims to make an impact. And while she’ll always have a larger story to tell, she leaves hidden messages in the symbolism of her work, that sometimes only she can understand. Her unique touch is visible and definitely something to check out. Rosemary posts and shares her work on her behance linked here. Get into the magic that is Rosemary Wangari.
Art Gambino (she/her)
Art Gambino is a powerful force. Confident in her skill and excellence as an artist this gifted stylist and model has been shaking up the online world in Nairobi for the last couple of years. Her fierce and provocative self-portraits exist as a captivating calling card across the digital space. Full of imaginative uses of props and poses, Art Gambino is very in tune with her creative mind and trusts her instincts completely when pulling a look or conceptualising a shoot. Her background in visual art, creating and selling paintings in uni, gave her the initial confidence boost to wholeheartedly embrace other creative languages, like fashion.
Art Gambino grew up loving and watching fashion shows on TV. These parades of beautiful people wearing beautiful clothing, owning the stage and showcasing art in such a personal way, affected the young girl, opening her up to what she deems is her purpose in life - living her art, existing as a walking expression of her own creativity is a large part of the artist’s allure. Her relationship to herself and the artist inside her, is a holistic one. Art Gambino views her art as a chance to experience herself. She is a canvas for one of the most influential artists to ever do it. For her this is God. In focusing on the creative energy used to create her, Art Gambino finds inspiration. Exploring what her body can do, how it can exist in different clothes and occupy space, functions as a great push in expanding her mind and what she is capable of. This creative freedom is part of what she views as the easiest part of her job. Having the freedom to create whatever she feels compelled to. Having the space to dive deep into her mind and explore any idea that may pass by is where she finds the most solace.
This young mogul in the making is ready for the heights her art will take her to. Aware that she needs to continue platforming her art, collaborating with others in fashion practitioners and artists alike, Art Gambino is no stranger to what can be the eye-opening journey of partnership. She views its importance in expanding one’s perspective and ultimately getting her closer to her dream. It is clear when speaking to this commandeering force is one to watch. Whether in front of the camera as a model or behind the scenes as a stylist, this fabulous, hard working creative is prepared to continue revealing her creativity in new and exciting ways. And we’re here for it!
Luca Rindi (she/her)
Luca Rindi is both an individual and a brand. Comprising approximately 10 different people over the course of the last 5 years, Luca the brand is spearheaded by Luca the person, but really functions as an amalgamation of the team’s best ideas. On any project, Luca the person can be quoted as saying, “The best idea in the room wins!”. Having the wherewithal to understand that simply because she gathered folks or conceptualised the original story, doesn’t mean that someone else cannot have a new better idea of how to grow it.
When first starting out, this creative didn’t realise that styling could be a job. Out of university they began by starting a thrift clothing brand. Buying and reselling second-hand clothing from one of the largest second-hand markets in Kenya, Gikomba. She created a brand that made the effort to digitise the shopping experience of folks looking to curate interesting wardrobes with a little less of the hassle. She knew that she liked to hang out with clothes and with people and as more people became familiar with her and her store she started getting requests for her to style them in person. Like a few of our other features, in a way she fell into creating looks for others. It hadn’t been her intention but she realised that in addition to the store it gave her a chance to play even more with fashion.
In her styling work, Luca prioritises comfort. Whether the outfit is absurd, or bizarre or boundary pushing, she intends for herself or her client to be comfortable in the expression .Now more than ever Luca is focusing on video production. From music videos and short films, to videos created for social media, Luca has embraced a different part of her skill set.
Most recently the fashion entrepreneur has worked on the set of the short film, “Love”, directed by another fellow creative, Matthew Matete. She also produced the “SEXY”, music video for the rapper and singer Vallerie Muthoni later last year. It’s projects like these that Luca hopes will continue to come through and keep giving her the chance to expand the LUCARND empire.
