HONESTLY… KIMYE ARE IN VOGUE. GET OVER IT!

So, I've been thinking about whether to add my two cents worth to this "OMG! How can Anna do that?" debate and I have so far resisted, only posting a few tweets to the effect that I don't get what the big deal is. Well, let me expound because I think some of us are such fash-mag snobs we think the industry "bible" is tainting itself by- gasp!- putting a reality TV show star on the cover of Vogue. Oh, yeah. Some have even evoked Kim Kadash's crime number one; starring in a porn video! Lawdy! 

When I tweeted about it, designer Thula Sindi responded saying he was also baffled by the snobbish response to the Kimye cover because, in his words, "People are being snobby about the least snobby institution- a fashion mag!".

He added; "Vogue puts 15 year-old Russian girls on the cover because they are… ummm… pretty! I don't get this 'worth' that Kim is supposed to have."

Need I say more? I don't think so. To the bloggers who have added their disdain to the Kimye cover debate, it would serve you well to think back a few years and recall that your presence In the fashion scene hasn't always been accepted with arms wide open. You were also a victim of a dumb snobbery that seeks to deny a simple reality: the nature of celebrity and the industry is not what it used to be. So, just get the fuck over it! Kimye is in Vogue! And I bet you watch #KUWTK, SO FALL BACK!

BONANG MATHEBA x DOSSIER MAGAZINE (IN 3D)

Is there a magazine that doesn't want Bonang Matheba on their cover? Her latest, out in stores soon, is Dossier Magazine and it's in 3D. I doubt there is much to be said because the cover speaks for itself except maybe to mention that she is wearing Alexander McQueen. Oh, and also, the organisers of Miss South Africa have appointed her a judge for this year's pageant. I think she brings credibility to the judging panel because of the experience she has building her own brand over the past couple of years. The girls could learn a lot from her and she, in turn, will be able to use this to see potential in them. 

Disclaimer: I do have a personal relationship with Miss Matheba, but I don't say any of this because of that. I think it is just a fact. Go ahead, deny it if you like but feel free to indulge me with a justification for thinking otherwise.

DANE DEHAAN x PRADA

Dane Dehaan is one of the stars of "Kill Your Darlings" which opens in South Africa on May 9, I believe. The film is about writer and poet Allan Ginsberg and his first year at Columbia University where his outlook on life would change forever. Dehann plays the troubled Lucien Carr, who was a friend of Ginsberg's at that time. He can also be seen in "The Place Beyond the Pines". At present he is filming "Life", a movie in which he plays James Dean. Dehaan did a Prada campaign last year and this year label boss Miuccia Prada called him back for the spring/summer '14 menswear campaign shot by Annie Leibovitz. There's something about this 27 year-old that I find fascinating. I don't know what it is yet, but I guess one will soon find out considering how busy he is.

LUPITA NYONG'O'S OSCAR WIN IS A TRIUMPH FOR BLACK AFRICAN EXCELLENCE

PIC: REUTERS.COM

When Lupita Nyong’o walked away with the best Supporting Actress accolade at the Oscars a few hours ago, I tweeted that it makes her the “first African” to win the coveted Academy Award but that would, of course, be incorrect. Charlize Theron won for her brilliant performance in Monster a decade ago. My intention was to tweet that it made Lupita the first black African.

I have to say, tweeting this did come with some hesitation because I know how easy it is to start a race debate by tweeting such things but my instinct was to tweet it anyway because, you know, it’s something worth celebrating.

One of my followers took offence to what I said and went as far as saying my thinking irritates him because “African is African”. Why racialise things, anyway?

Well, there are several points I need to make because in hindsight it would seem that I’m being racial about things, but the fact of the matter is that I am simply being realistic in celebrating black African excellence because history has always sought to tell us that we can’t be great. History has often sought to make us the scum of human existence.

In her acceptance speech Lupita said; “No matter where you’re from your dreams are valid”. For black people, and the undeniable historical disadvantage we’ve been through, celebrating what can be seen as the breaking down of an historical hurdle is given credence by the very disadvantage that remains a global reality. Not acknowledging this is tantamount to denying the past and this is something I cannot do. The point of all of this is that our celebration of ourselves as black Africans cannot and should not be seen as being racist or a downplay of any achievement by a non-black African. It is not that we are not proud of Charlize Theron’s win or Mark Shuttleworth’s voyage into space as the first African to do so. We are, but celebrating that which is specifically a global achievement by a black African is not simply a celebration of Africa but also a celebration of the strides that history is making in leveling the playing field. In closing, I’d like to quote Simphiwe Dana when she tweeted; “Lupita Nyong’o, the world just became a sweeter place. A place I am proud to call home.”

We’ve been denied a lot in the past. We cannot now deny ourselves the opportunity to celebrate ourselves. Besides, eliminating race from our discourse would make for a hunky corey story of a racial Utopian that quite simply does not exist. 

(This post was edited to add a last line that was previously missing from the original story)

SHARPENING THAT EYE @ WHAT IF THE WORLD

Golly! I kind of feel like a bit of a train wreck, really. Don't get me wrong; last night was fun. I can't remember much of the detail about what happened. I know I went to Marie Claire Magazine's Naked Issue launch, which was super fabulous (always a party with Marie Claire)! I also know that I ended up at the Waiting Room on Long Street jamming hard to some kick ass tunes. This is a total guess, I really don't know what the DJ was th'wow'in' down, but hey, I do know where the day started. It started at What if the World gallery in Woodstock where we went to the opening of artist Cameron Platter's exhibition. Read about it here

The few pictures posted here were taken there. I'm still trying to sharpen my photographic eye and it helps to have places to go where I can kind of do this. Please note that the beautiful flower man figure is not by Platter, but Athi Patra Ruga, whose works are also still up at the gallery.

HOW AN ACTRESS SMOKED AN OTHERWISE GOOD LOOK...

I've never heard of Hana Mae Lee, but according to IMDb she's an actress, model, comedian, artist and fashion designer. I was scrolling through some looks from last night's MTV Movie Awards when I came across this picture of her in a dress that I thought looks great on her sans that thing on her head, of course! The cigarette butt on her head takes Miss Lee's ensemble from possibly good to beyond bizzare. I don't know what statement she was trying to make but what I see is an actress who done smoked an otherwise good look. Cigarette butts stink! Even I as a smoker can't handle the smell of cigarette butts and I must say there's nothing fascinating about her fascinator.

Photo: ELLE.com via Getty