Faiza Ahmed
Artist, sustainable Fashion activist, interior Designer, social worker, owner of Manas, Co-owner and food visionary of Shanchayita, creative and Link strategy Director Bongogora Foundation
Crimson Pride
I believe that fashion can have a voice to speak of issues far beyond aesthetics. As I consider myself a fashion activist, my work has always had a purpose to make a statement on relevant issues, and more specifically issues related to women. Through my latest line Crimson Pride, I wish to bring the biological pride of menstruation to the spotlight. This issue has long been considered a taboo and has been muffled by hush-hush, the notion of stigma and negligence. I believe that this culture of concealment around this topic that has manifested in the form of euphemism and secrecy needs to evolve into a culture of pride, simply because this is the path through which the unique journey of womanhood results in ultimate celebration of womanhood. The feeling of suffocation our society has been experiencing during this ongoing pandemic felt eerily similar to what we women endure with menstruation throughout our lives. I have attempted to convey these emotions in the artwork that have been used in this line. This is also the first time I have used my own drawings in any of my fashion lines. In approaching the design, I have mostly used black and white, which is considered gender neutral. The main theme of this line is conveyed through the use of color red. I have used patterns and strands of red to symbolize the pride of menstruation. As far as material, I have used handloom fabric, and for techniques traditional hand stitch and blocks have been used.
