Goals & Nightmares: A Look Into Jokie Riak’s Clothes Design

Goals are the whole lot to Jokie Riak. A South Sudanese designer and model proprietor, Riak is continually dreaming and dealing to deliver his manifestations to life. He desires of making a style home constructed on storytelling. “Hopes and desires are wonderful,” says Riak. “That’s an important drive, however I can’t simply make it on hopes and desires.” He received’t must, and he’s already midway there with the creation of his model, SAFARI, and an upcoming assortment premiering in September.

SAFARI is led and curated by Riak together with six different individuals. The model focuses on three clothes strains: menswear, womenswear and customwear, the final of which Riak is particularly enthusiastic about. He launched the customwear line to attach extra together with his clients and spend time attending to know every persona, creating one thing new only for them.

Relating to the origins of his model, Riak says, “I bought the identify [SAFARI] as a result of once I would exit with my buddies … we’d go to a variety of locations and we knew lots of people, in order that they began collectively calling us the Safari Boys.” The nickname caught and flipped a swap in Riak’s thoughts. This moniker might characterize one thing greater—a style home.

“I bought the identify [SAFARI] as a result of once I would exit with my buddies … we’d go to a variety of locations and we knew lots of people, in order that they began collectively calling us the Safari Boys.”

Riak’s begin in style got here from his love of storytelling, which led him to attend Salt Lake Group Faculty to check style and enterprise. There, he found his favourite designer, Martin Margiela. Margiela’s debut present premiered in 1989 and left an impression on Riak. “When [Margiela] was [at Maison Margiela], he was so riveting, so thrilling, particularly the style exhibits,” Riak says. What enamored Riak was the best way that Margiela was in a position to set up his personal world and showcase totally different elements of it by way of his clothes. Margiela’s inspiration would then turn into Riak’s driving pressure for SAFARI and formed Goals, a capsule impressed by the spirituality of desires.

For this assortment, Riak discovered himself gripped by world-building and storytelling by way of style.  He says, “The identify of the entire story is Goals and Nightmares. It’s a two-part story and it’s a two-part assortment.” The story is about within the Medieval interval and follows two characters, Luna (after the moon) and Lumiere (after the solar). The pair of opposites encounter the methods through which desires and nightmares are interwoven all through our psyche. Riak takes a deep dive into unraveling the unconscious together with his designs, and the way taking note of our desires can inform us extra about ourselves than we predict.

“The identify of the entire story is Goals and Nightmares. It’s a two-part story and it’s a two-part assortment.”

Drawing inspiration from anime, each bit within the assortment is an integral a part of the storyline, utilizing calming colours and muslin to recreate the characters’ journey by way of the clothes. He plans to make use of a wide range of tulle for example the fluidity and lightness of desires but additionally desires to broaden on the potential symbolism totally different supplies maintain relating to the characters’ tales. To showcase Luna and Lumiere—each representations of sunshine in their very own methods—he will probably be utilizing reflective cloth, which is grey on the floor however emits a glow when uncovered to flashing gentle. It’s a style present however extra importantly, an expertise.

The Goals assortment can even characteristic customized items that won’t be recreated. “I’m going to be utilizing a variety of embroidery to play with the modularity with the garments,” says Riak, “primarily to make it actually arduous to breed.” He explains that this system will permit the gathering to be inextricable from the story and the expertise of attending the present. One piece, “The Angel,” stands out to Riak as significantly transcendent of its medium. “My favourite piece is unquestionably ‘The Angel’,” says Riak. “It’s going to be one of many final items as a result of each bit goes to characterize a chapter within the story … ‘The Angel’ goes to be actually necessary to the story.” And though he’s conserving “The Angel” a shock, you may see it quickly, this September.

Try Riak’s premiere assortment September 30 at Holladay Metropolis City Corridor and keep updated with the artist on Instagram @safarijokie.

Learn extra about native designers:
A Giving Tradition: Trend Designer Afa Ah Lavatory Encourages Sharing Your Artwork
Threading By means of: McKell Maddox Trend Design