The Fashion Artefact Project by Sadé Okayla

When you desire the weird and the wonderful, the freaky and the chic-y (new word alert?) or just the absolute bizarre, art is the place to go. Well, fashion more so, as an avant-garde-wearing-human-clotheshorse is always an interesting spectacle to observe. For example, take English designer Gareth Pugh, whose PVC, leather and Darth Vader style designs make anyone do a double-take. Frenchman Jean-Charles de Castelbajac, or JC/DC, is also guilty of this – just search up his Kermit the Frog collection of hats and coats to see what I mean. 

However, despite witnessing and accepting the more outlandish, peculiar aspects of fashion, We’re ashamed to say that upon stumbling onto designer Sadé Okayla’s website, we were left feeling slightly flabbergasted.

A Leicester-based fashion fabrics and accessories student, Okayla has just completed her fashion artefact project – an undertaking which explores the connection between the body and materials by investigating (and creating) fresh approaches to body adornment. And, as you can see from the images, Okayla’s fashion accessory is very innovative indeed. 

Although left wondering exactly what it is (a surrealist necklace, perhaps? A bullish, imaginative choker? Or maybe a minimalist, Shakespeare inspired, Christian Grey-esque BDSM neck ruff?), this just adds to the overall warped beauty of it. We at The Upcoming can’t help but admire the design, and marvel at the creative thought process behind it. 

Okayla’s reflection on her project is refreshing and a joy to read, adding an emotional touch, she states she’s “never been so happy with anything [she’s] created so far!”

As a final note, there’s only two things left to say: 1) her quote “design is not just [a] job but a way of life and understanding,” should be applauded, and 2) I would like to see this piece in a museum one day, because it epitomises art in every single compelling way. 

Diandra Todesco 

To view more of the fascinating project and reflections from Sadé Okayla click here.