Interview with Chapstudios: “Africans telling their African stories”

Meet Chapstudios, a young brand from South Africa. Its 22-year-old founder Thandazani Nofingxana is using his Xhosa heritage as inspiration for his designs. Thandazani beliefs that it is about time that young Africans are telling their own stories – and he wants to accomplish this through his designs.

APiF: Please introduce yourself.

Chapstudios: I am Thandazani Nofingxana, textile designer based in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. I’m the founder of Chapstudios.

APiF: What motivated you to start your brand?

Chapstudios: My brand is motivated by the idea of Africans telling their African stories good or ugly, with my current range inspired by Xenophobia in South Africa,interviewing mixed ethnic people in South Africa and how they find themselves in spaces where they feel like “the other” and not accepted.

APiF: What is your cultural heritage and how does your heritage inspire you?

Chapstudios: I am Xhosa, from the Eastern Cape. My heritage inspires me a lot; we are such a vibrant culture and we have the most amazing cultural elements like food clothes and the dancing is amazing. My inspiration draws from almost everything I could possibly tell a story from at that time.

APiF: Kudos, you already collected several awards! What makes your designs unique and sets them apart from others?

Chapstudios: I am very conceptual and I use very bold prints and colors for my clothes. Also the stories I tell are relatable and people get my ideas after having heard the background of the prints and on my prints I use real people.