Thebe Magugu & South African Spies
From humble beginnings in Ipopeng, Thebe has surpassed all expectations. Thebe Magugu is a South African fashion designer on the rise. He has seen a recent surge in success since winning the 2019 LVMH prize, an award that will help his journey but won’t define his future path. Growing up, he used clothing as a medium to express his thoughts and feelings. Thebe was never the garrulous type. A man of few words that would let his creativity fill the voids left by his natural inclination to pick his words carefully. “I’m not the most talkative but through making clothes I can be very expressive about my opinions and my ideas and I think that’s something that I’ve always loved about fashion,” he says. He has managed to create an entirely fresh body of work and has escaped the vitriol of the copycat call-out culture that exists presently. This can be attributed to the fact that he looks to art and fashion in his native country for inspiration rather than the usual infatuation of all things western. Clive Rundle, a fashion legend who Thebe describes as the South African Margiela has been a huge inspiration point for him. “There is a lot of tradition and culture we grew up with. I find that it’s so incredible watching my fellow designers here taking all of it and channelling it into their work.”
Photo of Thebe Magugu provided by Thebe Magugu
According to Thebe Magugu, in Setswana, Ipopeng means to beautify yourself. It also means a tight-knit community. Ipopeng, despite its founding in 1976, is one of the various apartheid-era townships that still do not feature on the suburb lists of Kimberley. Ipopeng’s histories and people remain unwritten and overlooked. The disavowal of everyday township lives, of powerful personal stories and of extraordinary achievements reflects this ongoing dismissal both in South Africa and the world. Ipopeng’s stories have been erased. They are understood as unimportant. This sense of a forgotten culture and a need to unpack untold stories through clothing is a constant theme throughout Thebe’s work.
Thebe Magugu SS21 “Counter Intelligence.” Provided by Thebe Magugu.
Styled by Ibrahim Kamara.
Photography by Kristen-Lee Moolman.
“Counter Intelligence,” his spring summer 2021 collection highlights his ability to share South African history and culture with the world in his own creative way. Originally inspired by Jonathan Ancer’s book “Betrayal: The Secret Lives of Apartheid Spies,” Thebe explored the lives of Apartheid spies in this collection. He conducted a series of interviews with confessed, tried, and detained ex-apartheid spies as a way of understanding their mindset on a deeper level. These were spies that were either part of the Apartheid government or spies that defected to the other side, essentially becoming double agents. Of the many spies that were interviewed, there was a specific focus on Olivia Forsyth A.K.A Agent RS407. Olivia Forsyth, a woman who was originally a Lieutenant spy for the security branch of the South African police had a change of heart after arriving in South Africa and learning about the atrocities committed by the apartheid government. She eventually betrayed the apartheid government and became a double agent for the African National Congress (ANC), a group dedicated to fighting against apartheid.
Thebe used clothing in this collection as a study of how clothing can be used to stand out or hide in plain sight, a skill that spies must master to blend into any social setting without blowing their cover. ”Our immediate picture of spies is largely informed by their portrayal in popular culture. Slim, ostentatiously demure, fashionable, and aloof. The truth is, spies are all around us. They are our beloved teachers, friends and family members,” says Thebe. This idea was translated into the clothing with a range of different looks representing different aspects of life and the versatility that exists within the dress-code of spies. The policewoman, the fashionable teacher, the university student. All aspects of the collection that are visible to an untrained eye. After Thebe’s interview with Olivia Forsyth, he collected scans of her fingerprints and used them to make a Trompe-l’oeil polka dot dress and skirt. This explored the idea of hiding in plain sight, an essential skill for spies. Under the right lapel of a blue suit jacket there was a small, printed microphone of a size that would require a slight squint to notice. Wearing this jacket transforms you into an undercover spy, well at least a pretend one. Continuing the theme of spies, a parka jacket in this collection covered in multicoloured lines was created by merging the polygraph of a confession of an apartheid spy and a source code for a virus. If James Bond was made into a realistic South African fashion themed collection, this would be it. Many fashion designers can merge their ideas into clothing but have a hard time replicating this for accessories usually used as a tool to maximise profit margins. However, this is not the case with Thebe who created what he describes as “password protected” bags for this collection.
Thebe Magugu SS21 “Counter Intelligence.” Provided by Thebe Magugu.
Styled by Ibrahim Kamara.
Photography by Kristen-Lee Moolman.
In a general sense, Thebe’s culture is something that he holds dear to him and is something that will always dictate his thought process. In South Africa, family and togetherness is important. The rough times and brutal history has meant that black people have had to stick together for survival. An emblem of his namesake brand titled the “sisterhood logo” exemplifies this fact. The sisterhood logo is based on an image of two black women close together locking hands, as symbol of togetherness. Despite the true meaning of the emblem, Thebe is fascinated by the everyday reaction to the emblem and how people interpret it. Some people understand what it symbolises with others thinking it represents two women having sex. “I think it is a very important and defining emblem because it speaks to my upbringing. I grew up with women whether that was my mother, my grandmother or my aunt. It’s as if that’s all I know. With my brand I want to create a sort of refuge and safe space for women not only in terms of fashion but as a general conversation,” Thebe explains. He transitions constantly between personal inspirations and South African history and cultural themes as inspiration for his collections with “Home Economics” his Autumn Winter 2018 collection featuring garment text prints of nightmares he has had.
Still in the early stages of his career, Thebe has a lot to offer and much more to teach us about South African history and his personal life. He opted to stay in South Africa as opposed to the common formula of getting famous and moving to Paris. Through staying in his homeland, he can employ fellow South Africans and help build the fashion infrastructure for future generations. Day by day he continues to make South Africans proud through his contributions to the fashion industry and he sure is destined for great things.