january-2019

62 / HERITAGE / Fashion
HERITAGE / 63
put together a look that is European,
but has an African twist.
The movement can be traced back
to the Congolese resistance in the 1920s,
when young men sought to adopt and
imitate French and Belgian clothes as a
way of combating colonial superiority.
Congolese houseboys spurned their
masters’ secondhand clothes and became
defiant consumers, acquiring the latest
fashions from Paris by spending their
small monthly wages extravagantly.
After independence in 1960, Kinshasa
– the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s
capital – and Brazzaville became centres
for a new African Francophone elite.
They travelled to Paris and London,
returning with designer clothes. Congolese
people are known for taking pride
in their appearance – their maxim being
that they would rather dress well than eat
well – yet La SAPE takes the art of looking
good to the next level. Papa Wemba,
the famously dapper Congolese rumba
singer credited with popularising the
Sapeur look, said inspiration for La
SAPE came from his parents who, in the
1960s, were, “always well put together,
always looking very smart.”
Although during the 1980s there
were campaigns to ban Sapeurs from
public spaces, they have been resurgent
in recent years, and are now treated
with respect as a vital and life-affirming
part of the country’s cultural heritage.
Sapeurs of all ages continue to gather
to dance, talk and have friendly fashion
face-offs as they compete for the bestdressed
title. In a country torn apart by
colonialism, corruption, civil war and
poverty, the Sapeurs have found that
shared sartorial ambitions – and their
gentlemanly civil code of conduct – can
help to heal the infighting. “I don’t see
how anyone in La SAPE could be
violent or fight. Peace means a lot to
us,” says Severin (62), whose father was
also a Sapeur.
The La SAPE movement is constantly
evolving beause the country’s disenfranchised
youth see fashion as a way of
navigating the journey from developing
country to a more hopeful future.
Despite being a tradition passed down
the patrilineage, many Congolese women
have begun donning designer suits, in
order to become “Sapeuses”. And the
increasing La SAPE following across
Central Africa is being helped by the
region’s exuberance and freedom of
expression.
As Papa Wemba once said, “White
people invented the clothes, but we make
an art of it.” Indeed, a quick perusal of
the images herein should leave you in
little doubt as to “who wore it better?”
Boukaka (30) has
been a Sapeur for 25
years. He works as
an electrician, has a
child and is married.
Although he loves
his Ray-Ban glasses
and Tissot watch, his
favourite accessory is
his earring.
“The Sapeurs
will spend
US$3,000 on a
suit when they
don’t even have
running water”
© Tariq Zaidi
Above: Maxim (43) has been a Sapeur
since he was seven years old. He mixes
labels such as Yves Saint Laurent and
Christian Dior with suits that he has made
himself. Now married and the father of
two children, he teaches others the art of
dressing elegantly. Left: Nino (31) takes a
stroll through his neighbourhood with his
Mississippi-style wooden pipe. He paints
houses and fixes roofs, but in Sapeur
mode, he’s treated like a rock star.