Exhibition.

Final exhibition.

Throughout the year I setted out to achieve a simple goal,  to present jewellery that signifies the status of a Xhosa man. This body of work is the testimony that jewellery is not just for show, it does play a significant role in each and everyone's life. To conclude, I see my self refferencial jewellery assuming a significant role to those who are inspired by it.

Figure 1 - Rozani. B., (2019) End year exhibition display.

Figure 2 - Rozani. B., (2019) End year exhibition display. (iphoco neckpiece).

 Figure 3 - Rozani. B., (2019) End year exhibition display. (ikrwala neckpiece).

Figure 4 - Rozani. B., (2019) End year exhibition display.(umkhwetha bracelet).

Figure 5 - Rozani. B., (2019) End year exhibition display. (imbeleko bracelet).

Figure 6 - Rozani. B., (2019) End year exhibition display

Figure 7 - Rozani. B., (2019) End year exhibition display.(amabhaso centere collection)

Ikrwala.

Ikrwala:

Figure 1 - This is Ikrwala (a little unimportant man) he is wearing a western style outfit and he is smeared with red ochre from head to toe carrying a stick.. 

The fifth stage of the Xhosa man milestone I will discuss is Ikrwala. It refers to a young unimportant man. A newly graduate initiated young Xhosa male to manhood. This is at the age around 25-35 years old.

Ikrwala wears a western-style outfit of clothes, in which he will eventually go out in the world. The graduate is then referred to as Ikrwala (a little un important man). Every day for a year he has to refresh his red ochre, he has to walk slowly, he may not run, as that is regarded as arrogant. Ikrwala has to demonstrate his humility. (See fig 1). According to (Elliot 1969:137) “after 3 months, he has to give away his clothes and after 3 years, he can look for a wife”. In this stage, I will be looking at the significance of his behaviour at this stage of his milestone as a young unimportant man.

https://babalorozani.blogspot.com/2019/09/ikrwala.html

ikrwala.

Ikwrala. an initiate graduate.

This is ikrwala (a little unimportant man) he is wearing a western style outfit and he is smeared with red ochre from head to toe. also carrying a stick. (figure 1)

this is a stage where Umkhwetha after his graduation ceremony, he is at the final stage of his adolescence, he is  then given a western-style outfit of clothes, in which he will eventually go out in the world. he is then referred to as Ikrwala (a little un important man). Everyday for a year he has to refresh his red ochre, he has to walk slowly, he may not run, as that is regarded as arrogant. he has to demonstrate his humility. (see fig 1)

https://babalorozani.blogspot.com/2019/08/ikrwala.html

Xhosa social and cultural issues influencing contemporary jewellery.

MAXHOSA BY LADUMA is a South African knitwear brand founded in 2012 by Laduma Ngxokolo. This was with desire to explore knitwear design solutions that would be suitable for amakrwala (Xhosa initiates). His initial vision was to create a modern Xhosa-inspired knitwear collection that would be suitable for this market. As a person who has undergone the process, Laduma felt that he had to develop premium knitwear that celebrates traditional Xhosa aesthetics.

laduma has taken something that traditionally belongs to a clan in the Xhosa community and that part of himself and created a brand that relates not only to ikwrala but everybody.

Xhosa social and cultural issues influencing contemporary jewellery.

chapter 2, slide 4.

MAXHOSA BY LADUMA is a South African knitwear brand founded in 2012 by Laduma Ngxokolo. This was with desire to explore knitwear design solutions that would be suitable for amakrwala (Xhosa initiates). His initial vision was to create a modern Xhosa-inspired knitwear collection that would be suitable for this market. As a person who has undergone the process, Laduma felt that he had to develop premium knitwear that celebrates traditional Xhosa aesthetics.

• Milestone "ikrwala": 

In traditional Xhosa society: a newly circumcised youth. A graduate of an initiation school.

Amaxhosa are a diversity of proud clans and these clans differ in their ways of practicing culture and customs. 
A graduate marched back from initiation school to their parental homes, the young men went indoors where girls of their own age helped them to smear themselves from top to bottom with a mixture of oil and red ochre. Every day, for the following year, the boy had to refresh his red ochre. He also had to walk slowly to demonstrate his humility and to signify that he was still a “small’, unimportant man.

Milestone: Irwala.

Cultural and community roles of ikrwala:

Cooking and washing up is done by these young men, and these young men are served with a dish separate from that of the senior men. Different ones from the elderly men take turns in lecturing to these young men, Gifts..are given by relatives and friends to enable them to set out in their new way of life. these roles were also used as an indicator of status, as Xhosa man had roles in their culture and communities.

Milestone:Ikrwala.

The different ways in which clothes and other accessories were worn signaled the status of the wearer and the clan he comes from, you can make a distinct differentiation in the way they dress, the smearing of the red ochre and the period they had to be ikrwala. The intensity of the color varying from clan to clan. you can see a mpondo ikrwala by his check hat and all cucky attire, a blazer and a shirt, and the intensity smearing of the red ochre, on that milestone for a year,refer to figure 1.

figure 1. Mpondo ikrwala..

you can see a Xhosa ikrwala, he throws a long scarf over one shoulder, which also serves as a cloak when it gets cold, he wears a suite, colour of his choice and he doesn't smear the red ochre, on that milestone for a period of 6 months, refer to figure 2. 

figure 2. Xhosa ikrwala.

today you see amakrwala wearing designer jerseys with a similar design of the mpodo headdress, and they also smear ochre that is not intense as that of the mpondo. being on that milestone for as long as they feel like, refer to figure 3. This a new look of an ikrwala.

figure 3. new style. mordern  ikrwala look.