Liberia: A Story of Women Told through Fashion

Korto Momolu

She is firmly grounded in her African roots, yet effortlessly designing to suit an international taste. She is a young, versatile and dynamic fashion, accessories and eco-friendly jewelry designer. Her designs have a diverse appeal to her wide range of clientele between ages 16 - 80.

International fashion stylist Korto Momolu visited Liberia in May 2011, after 23 years of being away from home. She was home to showcase a 27-piece of her breathtaking handmade collection, specifically designed for the Sankofa Fashion Show organized and hosted by Amani-Liberia. Amani-Liberia is a nonprofit organization that teaches Liberian women how to create, market and manage businesses through textile and sewing. An enterprising fashion designer and stylist, Korto was set to rock fashion enthusiasts from all walks of life with her thrilling and carefully selected designs at the Monrovia City Hall on May 7, 2011. Among outfits displayed were those made of Liberia’s signature fabric: the Country Cloth.

In an exclusive interview with me, Korto said the show “is like a rehabilitation fashion show for Amani-Liberia. Amani works with marginalized women, teaches them a trade, and in this case, it’s fashion --- sewing and designing. The aim is to make these women use their skills to make money for their families. This is not just another college, it is another option for those who don’t want to be nurses or doctors but are crafty and creative. And they can take that and be who I am. By coming here now, is the best time because I am a Liberian designer. For me, these women could be inspired by me and say ‘if she could, then I can’. This makes the goal more attainable, especially if you can see, touch the person and acknowledge what they do.”

Korto seeks to manifest in her designs the beauty, charm, and modesty of women. Inspired by her African roots, which are rich in diverse fabrics, this daughter of the soil – being of Liberian heritage -- came into international spotlight when she featured in Season 5 of Project Runway, an American television series in which fashion designers compete for a grand prize.  The United States-based Liberian designer hails from Zorzor, Lofa County.

The Monrovia show was hosted in three segments: Separation, Transformation and Celebration.

'SEPARATION'

This phase told the story of a lost womanhood – as victims of rape and other forms of abuses during the Liberian civil conflict. It reminded the audience of the agonies Liberian women went through when they were preyed upon as victims of gang and multiple rapes. Models paraded the runway in 10-piece colorful garments during this phase. Major themes characterizing this phase included: “Unraveling shredded beauty, bloodshed, naked truth, stripped, unwrapping, covering up, shame, exposure, false of security, revealing a false sense of balance, unfinished existence, re-occurrence of different emotions, mourning, remembering family, tied, disconnection, bound hands, no voice, covered mouth and violation”.  

'TRANSFORMATION'

Seven-piece garments were used to illustrate the story of hope, healing, restoration and transformation.  After all the war experiences, there is still room for the restoration of beauty. Although the beginning would be marred with heaviness, one still needs to be able to piece things together for the better. Though one might still be hunted by the flashbacks from past experiences, one must be resolute to restore that balance.

‘CELEBRATION’

This phase called for a need to celebrate the resolve, resilience and determination of these women to make headways in life. This phase told the story of courage in change in the lives of these women. Of course, the future is gradually brightening up, things might be simplifying and it is incumbent upon us as young women to take intentional control of our exposure.  In this post-war context, we are beginning to see the radiance of life returning and our sense of security is being restored.  Our challenge now is to begin wrapping all loose ends in your life and prepare for a new future, filled with hope and courage and intentional persistence.  

Asked about her clientele, Korto said: “My customer is obviously a woman because I don’t do men‘s design. She’s a confident woman who knows who she is. She’s comfortable in her skin. She’s curvy. At the end of the day, she knows what she wants in fashion. She’s not the ‘right now’ kind of woman. Five years from now, she can put on a Korto Momolu outfit, jewelry, handbag, and it would look like she just bought it out of a store. But she’s a smart woman, a consumer. She’s me. I am my customer. I go in a store and I don’t see things that actually fit me. So, I make things that look like me; they are curvy. We are proud of that. We are not afraid of our shape as African women. You can’t help it. Even If you wanted to be slim, you can’t lose all these other stuff on you. So why not celebrate it? Buy and make clothes to celebrate that. There is beauty in it.”

Korto loves to design silk, leather and grass, as her top three fabrics to work with. It doesn’t mean, however, that she is not working with other African-made fabrics. She has done a lot of designs with the mud cloth. She specializes in women contemporary handmade clothing, jewelries and handbags. These are the three things that she is designing for now, but has said that she would definitely expand her horizon to so much more.

Asked which trendsetter in the women’s world she would love to design for, if she has not, Fashion Stylist Momolu responded: “I have always loved Oprah Winfrey because I see her struggles in confidence. She’s one of my idols. She has shown me how you can come from nothing and have so much.  She’s so humble and not all about money and material things. And I love that about her. For me, it would be an honor to dress her. I have always wanted to dress our President, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, and we are working on that. These are strong women that I know, that dressing them wouldn’t be about the money. I wouldn’t even charge them.  It would be about the honor of saying ‘thank you’ for showing me that I can be who you are and even more.”

Interestingly, her name, Korto, means the “war-maker”. However, she is the complete opposite. “I am the peacemaker in my family. If everybody is separated, I will be the one in the middle, talking to everybody who’s fussing.  I was named after my grandmother. She wasn’t a war-maker either. These are traditional names.” 

It is very significant to brainstorm crafty ways of approaching issues in life. No matter what the issues, we must learn to challenge the status quo of one-way of doing things by adding different dynamics to the trend. This was exactly what Amani-Liberia did when it partnered with a world-class Liberian designer to tell the story of women’s sufferings in times of armed conflict, their experiences with rape and the challenge of acceptability and reintegration back into their respective societies of root.