Bling Bling.

https://babalorozani.blogspot.com/2019/09/bling-bling.html

Bling Bling:

  

Figure 1 - Nas and Slick rick American rap artists wearing jewellery.

Bling comes from the word bling bling which is a slang term popularized on hip hop culture, referring to flashy(see fig 1 and 2), ostentatious or elaborate jewellery, and ornamented accessories that are carried, worn or installed such as cell phones (see fig 3) or tooth caps.

Purpose of the look.

The bling bling look that I would like to achieve is not merely in a sense of elaborate precious jewellery, but precious in the purpose i will create it for. The xhosa bling jewellery will be the jewellery that talks merely to the status of a Xhosa man, i will look at the ornamented accessories that are associated with his milestones, beadwork and carried accessories, worn or installed such as smoking pipes, isagweba (knobkierie) (see fig 2) or small bags made of goat skin. I would like to attempt to manufacture jewellery that has these kinds of expressions. I look at bling bling as too many things going on or happening at the same time of which has a similar look with the Xhosa beadwork.  i am inspired by the colours and designs of traditional Xhosa beadwork.

Figure 2 - Xhosa man wearing over 75 pieces of beadwork.

Figure 3 - Boosie badazz an american rapper wearing over 10 pieces of jewellery.