THE DEMOCRATIC Republic of Congo born Cinthia Sifa Mulanga, has been commissioned by the Italian fashion house Gucci, to create an artwork.
The (25) has been tasked to celebrate the iconic Diana tote bag- in recognition of the late Princess of Wales Diana, who died tragically in a car accident in 1977.
“It has definitely been surprising, I was really taken aback,” says Mulanga, of the invitation to be featured in Gucci’s latest campaign. “I’m only now digesting what has happened and starting to understand the impact of my work and how different it is,” she said.
Mulanga was tasked with featuring the iconic Gucci Diana tote bag, in a new piece, commissioned by the Italian fashion house. First introduced in 1991, the bag was popularised by and later named after Diana, Princess of Wales.
The collaborative process, which saw many versions of the work-in-progress sent back and forth between Johannesburg and Milan, resulted in the artwork, Moment.
A Latitude student, Mulanga continues to rise to international recognition, with her representations of female subjects trapped in interior spaces striking a particular chord during the pandemic.
She graduated her 3rd year in 2020 at Artist Proof Studio in print-making combining techniques such as intaglio, Linocut and silkscreening.
Her third year body of work explored the politics surrounding the domestic space and notions of beauty within an Afropolitan context and her works in many mediums includes painting, collage, drawing and photography.
Image (Cinthia Sifa Mulanga has been tasked by Gucci to produce a tote bag in honour of Diana).
