Poly-Rythmo d'Afrique: Congolese Sapeurs and South African Smarteez

Over the past month or so I've been really taken up by two unique fashion sub-cultures in two very different African localities: the Sapeurs of both Congo-Brazzaville and the Democratic Republic of Congo (and the Congolese diaspora in France and Belgium) and the Smarteez of urban South Africa.

Sapeurs:
The word "Sapeur" comes from the acronym for the movement, SAPE, which stands for Societé des Ambianceurs et Personnes Élégantes (aka Kitendi-the religion/cult of the cloth). The term and acronym are also a play on the french verb "Se Saper," meaning "to dress." It is a culture of high fashion, with Sapeurs sporting suits and formal clothing in a style reminiscent of the 1930s with designer labels such as Armani, Gucci, and Versace.

La SAPE has been around for at least 25 years now and was popularized by the famous Congolese (DRC) musician Papa Wemba. The fasion cult was created in response to Mobutu's "authenticity movement," which was an attempt to break from European colonial identities and create a more "African" Congo. As part of this "authenticity movement," Mobutu advocated the banal abacost uniform, a Zairian spin on the three-piece suit, as the official attire of the new Zaire (now DRC). Papa Wemba and other Sapeurs developed their style in opposition to this aspect of the "authenticity movement."

Here are a few pictures of Sapeurs:

For more information and pictures:

The Congolese Sape by Héctor Mediavilla
Colors: Paradise is a Fabulous Suit
SAPE by Francesco Giusti

the Smarteez:
I know considerably less about the Smarteez of South Africa. I can tell you that the style originated in Soweto, that it is much more of a youth sub-culture and has little to nothing to do with politics. There tends to be an emphasis on color and a lot of the ensembles are seemingly "random"-an eclectic mix of colors, accessories and styles.