It presents an impressive variety of African comics and their unique perspectives. It features works by 20 artists from African countries, including South Africa, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, and Uganda. The focus is on superheroines who fight against problems such as patriarchy, neocolonialism, and homophobia.

Another central theme of the exhibition is the examination of African cultural objects and their history. The artists use comics to transform cultural artifacts and revive their stories. Charity Atukunda, for example, draws inspiration from a Congolese horn to create a narrative that reintegrates the object into the context of life.

The exhibition features comics that deal with historical events, science fiction, and queer themes. Particularly noteworthy is the work of Akosua Hanson, whose series “Moongirls” focuses on queer African heroines fighting for a free Africa. Charity Atukunda is also represented with her science fiction comic “The Strange Tree,” in which nature takes revenge on humans.

The exhibition also addresses the importance of comics in African culture as an important medium for imparting knowledge and finding identity. In her series “Ary,” for example, Dinah Rajemison tells the story of a girl struggling with her identity and the threat of climate change. In African countries, comics offer the opportunity to address complex issues such as identity, culture, and social problems and make them accessible to a wide audience.

The “Sheroes” exhibition thus highlights not only the creative diversity of African comics but also their potential to address and communicate cultural and social issues in a new way. It invites visitors to see the world through the eyes of African artists and opens a dialogue about identity, history, and the power of art.

© Front-Cover Sheroes by Wolfgang Günzel

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Thomas-Alexandre Dumas (also Thomas-Alexandre Davy de la Pailleterie, * 25 March 1762 in Jérémie, Saint-Domingue (today’s Haiti); † 26 February 1806 in Villers-Cotterêts) was a French Général de division. He was the father of Alexandre Dumas the Elder and the grandfather of Alexandre Dumas the Younger. His nickname was the Black Devil, and his name is inscribed in the 23rd column of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. He took part in Napoleon’s Egyptian campaigns.

General Thomas Alexandre Dumas

The Film

The Producers of French smash hit “The Count of Monte Cristo” and Oscar-nominated “Les Misérables,” Chapter 2 and Srab Films, have set an all-star cast for Ladj Ly‘s next film, “Dumas: Black Devil.” Rising French talent Theo Christine (“Supremes”) will play the title role in the adventure epic film, starring opposite Omar Sy (“Lupin), Vincent Cassel (“Black Swan”), and Francois Civil (“Beating Hearts”).

The buzzy project will be launched by Pathé, Goodfellas, and CAA Media Finance at the upcoming Cannes film market. It’s one of the most anticipated and ambitious French films on track to go into production in 2026. Pathé, which previously handled “The Count of Monte-Cristo” and the two-part saga “The Three Musketeers” (both of which were produced by Chapter 2), will distribute the France on top of partnering with Goodfellas and CAA Media Finance on foreign sales. CAA Media Finance will also represent North America.

“Dumas: Black Devil” will be produced by Dimitri Rassam at Chapter 2, a Mediawan company, and Toufik Ayadi and Christophe Barral at Srab Films, a Fremantle company, in co-production with Lyly Films and Carrousel Studios. Library Pictures International is co-financing.

Penned by Anne Abitbol, Dan Franck (“Carlos”) and Thomas Bidegain, whose recent screenwriting credits include “Emilia Perez,” “Dumas: Black Devil” will tell the unknown true story of Thomas Alexandre Davy de la Pailleterie Dumas, the son of a slave and a French noble man who defied the odds to become the first black general of the French army. He was also the father of Alexandre Dumas, the author of iconic literary works such as “The Count of Monte-Cristo” and “The Three Musketeers.” While he became the highest-ranking Black leader in the French military and served under Napoleon Bonaparte, General Dumas’ role in the French Revolution was underplayed, and Bonaparte even denied him a full pension and the Legion of Honor.

“Dumas: Black Devil” will mark the biggest project to date for Ly, who broke through in 2019 with “Les Misérables,” which won the Jury Prize at Cannes and went on to win four César Awards, as well as earned an Oscar nomination for best international feature. Ly said he was drawn to the project because “General Dumas’ life story is both powerful and deeply inspiring, a tale of courage, injustice, and resilience that deserves to be fully recognized.”

“I’m proud to bring it to the screen with an exceptional cast, whose talent and intensity will capture all the strength and humanity of these historic figures. It’s a project that carries immense emotion and urgency, and I can’t wait for audiences to discover it,” Ly said in a statement.

Dumas’ name on the Arc de Triomphe

A history buff

A history buff, Rassam said, “The revolutionary life of Thomas Alexandre Dumas deserved a treatment as heroic, powerful and moving as what our writers Anne Abitbol, Dan Franck and Thomas Bidegain have penned together under the stewardship of Ladj’s vision.”

“Together with Pathé we feel a great deal of gratitude and responsibility towards the extraordinary work of his son Alexandre Dumas and I can’t think of a better way to honor him than assembling this amazing team,” he said, point out that “Dumas: Black Devil” will bring back the “core of our exceptionally talented technical crew of The Three Musketeers and Monte Cristo, alongside Ladj’s longtime producers Srab, to tell his father’s epic and monumental life story.”

Ayadi and Barral said the project allies “some of the finest talents of their generation to embody these historic and larger-than-life figures.” The duo said the cast will “infuse powerful energy and authenticity into this epic.” The project will also pursue Srab’s “creative journey with Ladj Ly” with the aim to deliver this “long-overlooked story to the widest possible audience.”

Following the huge critical and commercial success of “The Count of Monte Cristo”, which sold nearly 10 million admissions in France and traveled around the world; Pathé Films’ chairman said the company looked forward to “bring to life the story of the man who not only inspired his son Alexandre Dumas’ trailblazing stories, but was also a fearless protector of our democratic values before he was eventually wiped by History because of the color of his skin.”

Safaee said the movie’s “exceptional cast shines a light on the epic, long-forgotten destiny of General Dumas, a true story that left us in awe, and whose universal resonance is amplified by the international renown of these actors.”

Preparation for “Dumas: Black Devil” has already begun for a February 2026 start date.

©Elsa Keslassy International Correspondent
@elsakeslassy

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BADUIZM

Erykah Badu is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. Her career began after opening a show for D’Angelo in 1994 in Fort Worth. Her first album, Baduizm, was released in February 1997. It spawned three singles: “On & On”, “Next Lifetime” and “Otherside of the Game”. The album was certified triple Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA)

ERYKAH BADU | Soul Train Awards 2018

Soul Train Documentary | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qkymY6VVzk8

“Live” | the first live album in 1997

Erykah Badu recorded her first live album, Live, while pregnant with Seven, and the release of the recording coincided with his birth. The album was released on November 18, 1997 and reached number four on the US Billboard 200 and number one on the US Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums. The album was certified two times platinum by RIAA for shipments of over two million copies. The album’s lead single, “Tyrone”, was released in October 1997 and became another R&B hit single. “Tyrone”, lyrically, is a song chiding a selfish, cheap, and inattentive boyfriend.

Erykah Badu | Tyrone | Live 1997

Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance in 1999

She also collaborated with the Roots (who had previously handled production duties on a number of tracks on Baduizm) on their breakthrough 1999 release Things Fall Apart. She was featured on the song “You Got Me”, by The Roots and American female rapper Eve. Co-written by Jill Scott, the song peaked at 39 in the US and 31 in the UK. The song went on to win The Roots and Badu a Grammy Award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group in 1999.

Erykah Badu | Honey (Official Video)

Erykah Badu | Window Seat (Official Video)

Erykah Badu | “Tyrone” | North Sea Jazz 2001

Erykah Badu | Back In The Day (Puff) | late-night TV Show

Erykah Badu | at Dave Chappelle’s Block Party | 09/2004

Erykah Badu | performs Green Eyes at AfroPunk 2018

https://afropunk.com/tag/erykah-badu/ Erykah Badu performs Green Eyes at AfroPunk – August 26, 2018

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Gold Caviar | Fashion Dancers

Dancers on Instagram: @itstemibaybee , @lookatchichi , @_extragolden , @miss.jay.wills | for booking: info@wearegcc.com | Instagram: @wearegcc | Facebook: Gold Caviar

Colors of Africa | Fashion Show

Colors of Africa | Models

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This year, the festival will also be held at new venues in Cologne in addition to the Filmforum NRW, events will take place at the Rex Kino, the Filmhaus Cologne, the OFF Broadway, the Lichtspiele Kalk, the KHM, and the COMEDIA Theatre.

The Africa Film Festival Cologne is the most important platform for African cinema in Germany. In a time of global upheaval and social debates about diversity and participation, it enables differentiated perspectives, promotes intercultural dialogue, and creates spaces for encounters.

Trailer 2025

Festival Films

Side-Program

In addition to the film screenings, the following program awaits you:

Live music and DJ sets create a festival atmosphere.

Workshops for schoolchildren allow young people to engage creatively with film and Africa.

A live podcast event at the COMEDIA Theatre in Cologne invites you to listen and join in the discussion.

Panel discussions in the auditorium of the Academy of Media Arts Cologne (KHM) will deepen the festival’s debates.

Posters

© FilmInitiativ Köln e. V./Afrika Film Festival Köln
From September 18 to 28, 2025

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Pablo Thiam: Of course, thank you very much for inviting me. I am a former professional soccer player who played in the 1st Bundesliga for 14 years. I started my career at 1. FC Köln in the early 1990s and then moved to FC Bayern Munich via VfB Stuttgart. In 2008, I hung up my boots at VfL Wolfsburg, where I held several managerial positions, including head of the youth academy. Most recently, I held the same position at Hertha BSC. I’ve lived in Germany for almost 50 years, having moved with my parents from Africa to Bonn in 1978 when I was four years old. My father was a Guinean diplomat from the capital, Conakry. When my parents moved on, I decided to stay in Germany to finish school and pursue my career as a soccer player.

What was it like for you to grow up in Bonn?

Pablo Thiam: I had a great time. This quiet city is still one of my favorite places in Germany. Being the seat of government, Bonn was special, exciting, and multicultural. I felt safe.

How important was a good education at home for you?

Pablo Thiam: No argument: it was very important! I was lucky that my parents had a good education, and we had certain opportunities thanks to my father’s job. That’s not necessarily a given when you come from a pretty poor country in Africa. Education was a priority and very valuable. I grew up speaking French and graduated from a Belgian high school. My parents also brought one of my cousins to Germany to give him a better perspective by allowing him to study. Many relatives did the same. My parents always said, “If you study or train in Europe, you will have an advantage in Africa. Then you can go back home and help the country and help the people. That was very important to them.

Do you know of any Africans who returned to Africa after their education?

Pablo Thiam: Yes, a lot of them. They showed a lot of commitment when they came back and did a lot for their country and the continent. The fact that I stayed in Germany was a combination of personal and business reasons.

When did playing football become your dream job?

Pablo Thiam: I didn’t realize it until I was 17 or 18. I wasn’t discovered until I was 16. That’s unthinkable nowadays. At that time, I said to myself: “Wow, maybe I can do more.” I may never have been the most talented player, but I always tried to make the best of the situation. That’s how I achieved what many people dream of. I was grateful for that, which in turn helped me understand the bigger picture, the beautiful but often tough business of football. When I joined the club as a six-year-old, I just wanted to play football; I never thought I would become a professional. At home, football was omnipresent. My father played for Guinea’s record champions Hafia FC and knew many African football greats such as Petit Sory. Unfortunately, my father suffered a very serious injury and broke his neck. It was a shock, I have to say: luckily, he survived. But after that, his career was over. At the same time, he was able to take the opportunity to work as a diplomat after his studies.

You have worked with famous coaches and football stars. Is there an encounter that you particularly remember?

Pablo Thiam: Frank Schäfer discovered me back then, brought me to 1. FC Köln always believed in me. I would describe him as a mentor who has become a friend over the years. But I have to say: at every station, I was lucky enough to meet people who stood by my side, inspired me, and supported me. I wanted and still want to learn more, no matter what. I would therefore describe myself as outgoing and open – even if it’s not always easy. This may be due to the mix of African and European culture. Looking back, I can count myself lucky that I met a lot of great people who are still in my life. I have been able to learn a lot from them. It started with my coach when I was young and continued with my consultant, who has since become one of my best friends. We have also become a good team outside of our work as advisors. Of course, there were also encounters and experiences that I remember negatively, but in their way, they also helped me to recognize what I didn’t want.

When did you decide to stop working on the pitch and start working off the pitch?

Pablo Thiam: It was a bit of a process. I could see in the 2007/08 season that I wouldn’t be playing at the highest level for much longer. I asked myself whether I wanted to be a footballer who would continue playing in the 2nd or 3rd division, even though I had always played in the Bundesliga. Some professionals miss the jump and can’t stop – I didn’t want to be like that.

What was the decisive factor?

Pablo Thiam: I knew I didn’t want to be a coach. One or two training sessions a day, games at the weekend, plus a lot of traveling and hotel stays – I didn’t want that treadmill anymore. That’s why I accepted Felix Magath’s offer to assist him at VfL Wolfsburg. At the time, he was coach, general manager, and sporting director all rolled into one. I started as team manager of the Bundesliga team, and after a spell as assistant to the general manager, I was promoted to head of the youth academy. None of this could have been foreseen, but I am glad I made the right decisions at the right time. It soon became clear that I wanted to pass on my experience to the players and, at that time, increasingly to young talent.

What do you think about digitalization?

Pablo Thiam: Progress, new ideas, and generally things that move our society forward are exciting. Digitalization is one of them, as it now affects almost every area of life and ideally provides practical solutions. Processes that bring people together and encourage collaboration. We can see children growing up with new technologies and having completely different opportunities than we did at that age. Digitalization simplifies and speeds up communication and the flow of information. On the other hand, we all must use digital achievements responsibly and learn from them. Keyword: fake news or misuse of data. We need to weigh up the pros and cons, the opportunities and the risks, to find a positive and sensible approach to how digitalization can help society.

Thank you, Pablo, for your time and the interview.

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She began her workshop in 1992 and sought to modernize traditional Mandjaque weaving with contemporary colours, patterns and locally-sourced raw materials. Her efforts resulted in sophisticated designs that have been commissioned by well known discerning designers and fashion houses.

Aissa Dione Tissus | Impressions

Representing the culture of West Africa

West Africa consists of the countries located to the south of the Sahara Desert. It has been a flourishing center of trade for gold and salt since ancient times. One of the first kingdoms built here was in 1000 B.C along the Guinea coast by Nok culture. From the 1st century AC to the 3rd century AC, the Ghanaian kingdom flourished in the southeastern region of current Mauritania and western parts of Mali. Until the 16th century, many kingdoms such as the Mali kingdom and Songhai kingdom were founded, flourished, and deceased in the history of West Africa.

The woven textile culture has existed in West Africa from ancient times. It has its roots in the hand-woven textiles of ancient Egypt. The few available records show that there was a tradition of weaving in the Kante culture from around the middle of the 15th century. Hand-woven textiles have been used for ceremonies and are considered a spiritual object. These textiles were woven by only a select group of people hence, they were precious as such, and were used as money, and as a representation of wealth.

In Senegal, there has been hand-woven textile tradition in Manjack people who emigrated from Guinea-Bissau. 27 years ago, a French and Senegalese artist and designer, Aissa Dione, who exists at the crossroad of two cultures, started a workshop with one of the last remaining groups of these craftsmen and a single hand-weaving machine of Manjack weaving; thereby creating Aissa Dione Tissus.

Fabrics

She has applied the technical knowledge she acquired through her study in fine art to the traditional hand weaving. Working along with these craftsmen, she widened the width of the textile, which was traditionally only 15cm – 20cm, to 90cm -140cm to make it commercially viable.

In addition, she adopted a sophisticated color palette and developed newer patterns for the textile, while improving the quality of the traditional raw materials such as cotton and raffia. All of this, mixed with her innate artistic sense and design knowledge now gave the Manjack weaving an added nobility, brightness, and opulence. This propelled Manjack weaving to new heights of success as a textile for decoration and furniture upholstery.

Impressions II

Aissa Dione Tissus has today grown to be a largely successful atelier, with about 40 machines, 80 people on staff, and has received orders from the likes of Hermès, Fendi Casa, and other renowned designers like Jacques Grange, Christian Liaigre, Peter Marino. Nowadays in Africa, where these fabrics were imported, it shows that the continent is rich in materials, the know-how of textiles. Aissa Dione Tissus utilizes the best materials, the skills, and knowledge that is originally from West Africa, while at the same time being to adapt to the industrialized nature of the Western world. Aissa Dione’s vast knowledge of the local textile industry and her ability to collaborate with a large number of notable artists from around the world have created new designs that have led Aissa Dione Tissus to be one of the few real success stories from Senegal.

That said, the hand-weaving tradition has been steadily decreasing for a number of years. Aissa Dione has been actively working with the government of Burkina Faso and Togo to develop and save the existing weaving cultures by creating sophisticated designs, improving quality, and training the weavers in order to propel those traditional weaving arts to the heights of textile for the commercial use while maintaining the uniqueness which each culture has.

Saving an ancient craft

Aissa Dione | TEDx Sandaga

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For almost 60 years, the Orchestra Baobab from West Africa has stood for opening up the music of its homeland to pop from the USA and Europe. For Nubiyan Twist from Leeds, in turn, the sound of this legendary orchestra is one of the cornerstones of their own bridge-building between Afrobeat, hip-hop, funk, and soul. The NUEJAZZ double concert on October 26 in Nuremberg opens a window into the future of contemporary music beyond stylistic boundaries.

Orchestra Baobab

Senegal became independent in 1960. Like many other states in Africa, Senegal had to start from scratch politically, socially, and economically after the withdrawal of the former colonial power, France, and build new structures in order to function and survive as a state. Politically, in particular, the first years were turbulent for the people of Senegal, characterized by the ambivalent attitude of their first Senegalese president, Léopold Sédar Senghor.

On the one hand, Senghor and his “Union Progressiste Sénégalaise” party effectively ruled alone from 1965 onwards. On the other hand, he pursued an almost visionary cultural policy, giving the Senegalese people unrestricted access to music festivals, recording studios, art galleries, and museums.
During these years, Senegal’s capital Dakar, was home to the Miami, a music club where bands performed and people could dance to their sound. As was customary at the time, this club also had its house band.

In 1970, the Miami was renamed Baobab, and the house band found its name: Orchestra Baobab. Even back then, the orchestra was as heterogeneous as its sound was hybrid, with musicians from Senegal, Togo, and other countries in West and Central Africa playing jazz, Latin, Afro-Cuban, and regional music.

The music of the Orchestra Baobab certainly inspired and fascinated its audience. And the longer the orchestra played together, the more it opened up to (Afro)American pop music. It disbanded in 1987, only to celebrate a comeback in 2001 at the instigation of Youssou N’Dour. Since then, Orchestra Baobab has been demonstrating worldwide that its unique blend of styles, for which it has always been renowned, has lost none of its freshness, liveliness, and originality.

Orchestra Baobab | North Sea Jazz 2023

Orchestra Baobab | Pape Ndiaye

Nubiyan Twist

The band Nubiyan Twist formed at Leeds College of Music in 2011. Even back then, nine fellow students from this music college in the northern English city wanted to make music that would ignore stylistic boundaries from the outset and sweep away any aesthetic restrictions. Even today, the nine musicians still want to be open to any genre; their music should stimulate you intellectually and emotionally in equal measure. And even back then, 13 years ago, the result was an urban sound clash of cultures, a breakneck mix of Afrobeat, funk, soul, hip-hop, and dancefloor that turned jazz on its head again.

This Afro-British collective has released three albums which, on the one hand, show what great musicians are gathered under the name Nubiyan Twist and who know how to master any task that comes their way with bravura. On the other hand, Nubiyan Twist is all about celebrating exuberant, pushing grooves, brass themes that flow into sweet melodies, laid-back harmonies and strong vocals. Little has changed on the fourth album, “Find Your Flame”. “Like all our albums, this one is a snapshot of our influences and journeys during production,” says Nubiyan Twist guitarist and bandleader Tom Excell.

“Most importantly, the process we went through together has helped to rekindle the fire of resistance to life’s adversities in each of us.”

Nubiyan Twist | So Mi Stay

Nubiyan Twist | Figure Numatic (live)

NUE JAZZ

In 2013, Nuremberg jazz musicians guitarist Frank Wuppinger and bassist Marco Kühnl envisioned organizing an international jazz festival for their hometown. What started eleven years ago as a local event has since evolved into a success story known as the NUEJAZZ Festival. For the two festival organizers, jazz is not merely a defined style; it is a fluid form of music created in the moment, transcending language, cultural, and social barriers. This approach aims to provide both performers and the audience with a unique and shared concert experience. Their efforts have been validated: this year, the NUEJAZZ Festival was awarded the German Jazz Prize as “Festival of the Year.”

Wuppinger and Kühnl are now so open in their programming that it is easy for them to curate aesthetically diverse bands and projects for each of their festival editions. The jazz of their imagination reaches out to the Afrobeat and Rumba Congolaise of Central and West Africa, integrates pop and rock music from the USA or Europe as a matter of course, and is happy to enter into connections with the club culture of the dancefloor, for example. Once again this year, from October 19 to 30, established jazz greats such as pianist Brad Mehldau and guitarist Kurt Rosenwinkel will meet iconoclastic innovators such as London rapper and keyboardist Alfa Mist and American trumpeter Theo Croker.

A highlight of this year’s edition of NUEJAZZ promises to be the double concert on October 26, when the Pan-West African Orchestra Baobab shares the stage with Nubiyan Twist from Leeds, England.

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afrolifestyle: These beautiful and unique pieces of jewellery that you design using collectible African trade and tribal beads have had a long history and have travelled long ways. Your own personal history has been shaped by extensive travelling and living in many countries in Europe and Africa. You have changed continents and swapped careers. Your cultural and professional background is eclectic and multifaceted. Could you tell us more about it?

DS: Yes, I have lived a life of a modern nomad, on a permanent move and immersing myself in different geopolitical realities and cultures. I was born in ex-Yugoslavia, in a multicultural environment of the town of Sarajevo, today’s capital of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As a student, I moved to Paris where I got a Ph.D. in comparative literature and then started working as a university teacher. The first career change happened when I joined an international press network to become a deputy editor-in-chief.
Later on I lived in The Hague and Berlin, and then in Brussels, where I attended a film school because I wanted to make documentary films. After that, I spent seven years living in Rwanda and in Senegal, extensively travelling in many countries of the region, writing and making documentary films. And also collecting trade beads and designing jewellery! Which I continue doing today, in Berlin.

How did you first discover African trade beads?

DS: Oh, it’s a long story! Twenty years ago I was on a business trip in Morocco and took a day off to explore the legendary souk of Marrakesh. And there, in its Ali Baba’s Cave ambience, at the end of the enchanted labyrinth of crowded pathways, I suddenly spotted a discrete shop window with the most exquisite jewellery. It was made of beads whose beauty was beyond anything I had seen before. To enter the tiny shop one had to ring a bell, like in the most exclusive jewellery shops of Place Vendôme. The door opened, I walked in and got initiated into the fascinating world of African trade beads.
I will never forget the shop owners, fairy-tale like figures: two lean old men with long white beards, wearing djellabas and fezzes. With an almost religious zeal, they showed me their magnificent collection of antique jewellery pieces. When I admitted being astonished by their exorbitant prices, so unusual for the souk standards, the two bead “wizards” just shook their heads in bewilderment and grasped for some big, heavy books from the dusty shelves. They turned out to be African Trade Beads Encyclopaedias and Atlases with beautiful photos of these marvellous tiny artefacts they had in their shop. They showed me one bead after the other and explained their origin and value they had as currency used all over the African continent.

Can you tell us more about the history of African trade beads and their role in Africa?

DS: In the 15th century, Portuguese traders introduced glass beads as currency to purchase valuable goods on the West African coast. Other European traders followed and this currency was used until the early 20^th century. Consequently, trade beads continued to be produced throughout Europe. Although Venetians dominated the production, Czech, Dutch and German beads were also very much in demand.  An infinite variety of African trade beads, often designed to satisfy the local taste, continue to astonish and seduce us today due to their beauty, artistic quality and degree of sophistication and finesse. 

Apart from their decorative value, the beads have a deep symbolic meaning, which can explain their great success as currency on the African continent.  They were worn by men and women to indicate their social status and proudly exhibited at many celebrations and rituals. They defined the cultural identity of different ethnic groups and accompanied crucial life events, such as childbirth, marriage, coming of age, and passing away.  

When did you start collecting the beads? How did you find them?

DS: I started looking for the beads and collecting them when I moved to Africa and it was not an easy endeavour. At the same time, I was collecting specialised literature to study the beads in order to be able to recognise them and estimate their age and value. African trade beads have been carefully preserved as family treasures transmitted from generation to generation. Nowadays, they are getting more and more rare and difficult to find. I got to know some passionate collectors who put me in touch with bead merchants. I was also systematically scrutinising many African markets and every now and then I was lucky enough to come upon an unexpected treasure hidden among trifles.

But how did a bead collector turn into a jewellery designer?

DS: The timeless beauty and mystery of these ancestral beads irresistibly inspired me to use them as precious raw material for my creations. Each genuine hand-made bead used in Déesse by DS pieces is a unique miniature work of art with its own story and its secrets. For me it was like answering the calling of the beads themselves to be assembled together in a very particular and unique way in order to give them a new life. Centuries old and still young, these beads have travelled between lands and continents. They have been admired, desired, purchased, exchanged and worn by hundreds of women and men. And now they have become something entirely new in the hands of a contemporary designer.  

What is the philosophy behind your brand?

DS: More than an exclusive fashion object, every Déesse by DS piece is a symbolic journey through time and space, a tribute to all never-to-be-known artists who produced the beads and all never-to-be-met persons who enjoyed their beauty and meaning. I juxtapose antique and ancient with vintage and modern elements in playful compositions with the intention to create audacious fusion pieces of jewellery, which are at the same time fashion and collectors’ items.

afrolifestyle: Thank you for the interview.

Déesse by DS jewellery combines ethnic spirit and urban sophistication, old-fashioned glamour and ultramodern chic, into highly symbolic wearable art objects. 

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