Visual artist brings Wala fabrics model
Blantyre-based visual artist Ellis Singano, who specialises in batik, a technique of wax-resist dyeing applied to the entire cloth, has expanded his base by introducing Wala Fabrics tie and dye clothing.
Singano, who has held several exhibitions in and outside the country, said this is an enterprise that has been working on for years and that now is the time to put it on the market.
“I was assessing the situation all these past years but everything is now in black and white. People know me for batik artworks which they have embraced but I am now adding batik clothing,” he said.
Singano said he wanted to check the market before rolling out the Wala fabric and that his target is the local market.
He said he was hoping that everything will be ready February end.
“To the other side, it is a challenge for people to buy batik artworks as many feel they are expensive and a good number of the customers are foreigners. So, bringing Wala is trying to bring people closer to the batik,” Singano said.
He said he will work with others to bring out the best in the project.
“This will be cheaper compared to batik artworks and it will be in different outfits such as shirts, chitenje wrappers and others. Again, we have tried everything; it is washable and a 100 percent Malawian product. Wala Fabrics is here to stay and I am calling upon people to support this project,” Singano said.
He said he has gone for the name Wala as well as used the butterfly logo to show the beauty and originality of batik.
“I have been producing batik artworks for over 26 years and, so, we are saying Wala (light) to show that by wearing this, they will feel the light. As for the butterfly logo, butterflies are beautiful and in different colours and they are original. As Malawians, we need to shine with originality just like butterflies,” the visual artist said.
Last year, Singano launched an exhibition titled ‘Fearless Woman’ at Jacaranda Cultural Centre in Blantyre in which he highlighted the hurdles that women face and how they are not afraid to take risks.
