Courtesy of Sarah Staiger
Alama, which translates to “symbol” in Swahili, is a “culture-to-wear” jewelry brand conceived by journalist Elisabeta Tudor and artist Nini Gollong following a trip to Tanzania to help NGO Africa Amini Alama three summers ago. The non-governmental organization helps improve the livelihood of impoverished Maasai and Meru women, by providing them with basic human right’s such as free healthcare, social help, and education. It was during this trip that Tudor and Gollong were introduced to what Tudor describes as “one-of-a-kind jewelry” made by the Maasai women. “We thought we need to show this to the world, we need to empower these women, to make sure that their craftsmanship and cultural legacy will be respected internationally, to help them raise their revenues by helping them to sell their jewelry on an international level. That’s how Alama started,” she said over email to Vogue.me. In an effort to avoid and fight behaviors of cultural appropriation, the brand puts the Maasai women at the forefront of their own creations. “We also want to promote their culture and to give them a voice as they might otherwise not be heard, because as you know, a lot of luxury brands have been inspired by various African tribes, but never actually did something for them,” she explains.
Since its inception, the empowering jewelry label has had a positive impact on the lives of a collective of 35 Maasai women artisans employed to craft the collections. Each artisan is paid up to three times more than what they would be paid locally to design and produce the jewelry, ensuring they can support their families. Additionally, Alama has received plenty of support from the industry. Last year, French fashion group Faith Connexion collaborated with Alama on accessories for its Spring 2017 men’s collection as well as gave the jewelry brand a dedicated space to sell and exhibit its pieces in their New York flagship. “If it wasn’t for Faith Connexion, we wouldn’t have been able to have so much exposure – we are very grateful for all their support,” says Tudor, crediting Faith Connexion’s Maria Buccellati and Alexandre Bertrand for believing in Alama’s vision from the very start.
“Just seeing the dedication of the Maasai women artisans who work on the project is a great satisfaction. They might have been skeptical about it in the beginning, as soon as we got the first orders, they started to be very enthusiastic, they truly started to believe in it. Some women even started to bring their daughters with them to the workshops in order to teach them how to work on the jewelry pieces,” muses Tudor. “This project is having an impact in Tanzania – more and more women start to get in touch with Ekaely and ask her if they can join the project.”
Today, Tudor and Gollong, alongside their business partner Ekaely Pallangyo, Australian videographer Gavin Youngs, and Moroccan photographer Ilyes Griyeb have launched a crowdfunding campaign with the aim to produce and exhibit the first ever photo and video fashion campaign set at the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro and dedicated to Maasai women artisans. The goal of the campaign, which is online on Kickstarter, aims to raise approximately US $22,000 to in the next month to cover all of the production cost.
Courtesy of Sarah Staiger
Griyeb, who was approached by Alama a few weeks ago to take portrait photos of each of the 35 Maasai women artisans that make the traditional jewelry tells Vogue.me “I’ve accepted this mission as I would like to narrate the realities of the Maasai women of Northern Tanzania, to portrait and depict women who might otherwise not be seen or heard.”
The main messages he wishes to convey through his images? “I’d like to think that my pictures are a vehicle for emotions, for personal stories and that they help promoting people who struggle to make their voices heard in the Western world. Today more than ever, I seek to portrait and depict people who might otherwise not be seen or heard: in our fast-paced and industrialized societies, manual work and craftsmanship have been replaced by automated processes and have become a rarity.”
The photographer is hopeful about the potential global awareness that the campaign might bring to Maasai women and their craft. “Manual workers and artisans are not captured or honored as they ought to be – and yet, they are at the very root of the cultures of our modern-day societies. I’d like to honor them by introducing their work to a larger, international audience through my pictures. I just want to portrait the Maasai women naturally and respectfully, picture them both as human beings and artisans.”
You can follow @alamaproject on Instagram, where 35 Maasai women artisans will be featured everyday within the 35-day long crowdfunding campaign #35days35women, and donate to the crowdfunding campaign here.
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