Textile Designer Memunatu Barrie Is As Fresh As Her Freestyle Fashion Choices
From studying textile design at Central Saint Martins, to curating a brand identity that centre technicality adorned by childlike candour, Memunatu Barrie has been using collage and self-portraiture as an extension to her work. Born in Sierra Leone before moving to Denmark, to have then spent the last decade in London, Memunata is wonderfully complex and layered. Colour seeps into every crevice of her being and works. Deconstructing and rearranging clothing, imagery and fabric to emboss a new sensibility and style, this is the future of fashion we never knew we’d need.
Like many artists of today, Instagram has played a pivotal part in garnering the necessary traction to Memunatu’s playful work. Through sharing documentations of the printing process extending her practise into photography and styling, there is a sense of confidence in the stand out way in which the artist presents herself. Orange berets atop silky pink headwrap, African print dungarees layered over the artist’s own illustrated print shirts; there is artistic imagination in each composition this young designer arranges. Memunatu playful use of surrealist elements such as perspective, scale and physical human forms encourage a release of humour, yet the direct and considered nature with which she presents makes for a sobering and socially progressive finish. As a multidisciplinarian, her practice is fed by a nostalgic joy of playing dress up as a youngster, the sophistication which Memunatu’s work appears to have today is a promising sign for how this young artists and her ilk are creating a braver, newer world order.
Tell us about your upbringing, what was is it like growing up in the Netherlands?
I was born and raised in the Netherlands for the beginning of my childhood. My family and I moved to London in 2007. I grew up in a small town in the south of Netherlands called Zwolle. The town was nice aesthetically, clean and safe. On the other hand, the town was such that if you were of a minority group that you were uber visible, [which meant that] growing up me and my siblings experienced quite a lot of bullying for being “other”. We faced a lot of covert racism growing up which is not a great experience to associate with my place of birth, but it is the truth in my experience. Growing up in the Netherlands the way that I did has partially formed my identity as an adult, so, although my experience may sound a little negative, I don’t want it to be a negative thing for me. Considering all the above I am happily Dutch by nationality, I speak the language, and I have and will go back to visit the bigger more diverse cities. I honestly love London and I am so happy that the pubescent years growing up here were so much more positive for me than the Netherlands were socially and creatively. Netherlands was socially and creatively.
What role does dressing up/styling yourself in playful ways relate to the way you’re able to express yourself as a person?
I love colour and patterns so I dress in colour and patterns. A lot of the prints I wear is Ankara – a Dutch wax printed fabric. Aside from the aesthetic this I reflective of my nationality/ heritage. I tend to layer my clothes as well for two reasons; my religiosity as well as comfort. It allows me to combine different aspects of my personality, express my identity, personality and interests through dress.
How does your work relate to imagery and fashion that you have grown up around both at home and in the -mainstream media?
Many things inspire the works that I produce, from interesting textures I might stumble across on the floor, referencing cultures I’ve been exposed or looking into my heritage. Where I explored some themes of heritage and culture was through a collaborative project I curated called “We are patchwork” 2017. The project uses the imagery of patchwork to discuss dual identities, eclectic backgrounds and the forming of one’s identity. The project also focused on the topic of sustainability which was inspired by the current climate emergency and the contribution that the fashion and textiles industry makes when it comes to waste production. I think the imagery I use in my works span from one topic to another, it’s never really about one topic consistently. Some strong themes do continue throughout, however being a descendant of West Africa, where colour is used in celebration and a staple in our textiles, I do not shy away from it.
Your collages play with ideas that are a mixture of surrealism, humour and complex yet elegant compositions – how does the collage process feed into the work you make as a textile designer?
As a textile designer who specialises in print, collaging is something I’m always aware of. Playing with composition, scaling things up, etc. Collages tell stories through imagery which is what I essentially do with all of my work, whether that is through my sketchbook, research or figuring final compositions for a sample. Despite that, not all of my collages have a strong deep meaning behind them. Some were made to fill the space of boredom, (these tend to be the more humorous ones) they’re (meticulously) random and then I like to make up a meaningless funny little story behind them. Whereas others were made as a means to work through a strong more meaningful concept.
Where do you draw your inspiration from? You feature in many of your photographs and collages – what started this process of self-documentation?
My inspiration comes from lots of places, random things I see, pop culture, my peers... I’ve always been quite photogenic and as someone who enjoys art/design I’ve also always enjoyed abstracting things. I enjoy putting garments together and combining colour ways. Making colour schemes is another thing I do a lot with textiles in my sketchbooks I would illustrate colour schemes with paper, me styling myself is a life-sized living version of this process so I like to experiment with it and document it. I like to use myself as my own muse; it’s fun, it’s just another way of expressing myself in.
Your social media profile feels like an exciting platform that allows you to play with identities with a strong feminine edge. How do you find people respond to the work you share online?
I made my profile back in 2016 / early 17 when one of my foundation teachers gasped at the fact that I didn’t have an Instagram. She said “it’s a great platform to put your work out on” so I made a profile. The response I’ve gotten for the pieces of work I share on my platform has been so positive. People that have stumbled across my page seem to enjoy and appreciate the content, the strong theme of identity, femininity resonates with many. I’d also like to think that my content is open to interpretation.
How has social media or the internet influenced the way you work?
Social media has definitely pressured me into producing lots of work and sharing it quickly. I felt particularly pressured to produce and share once the algorithms were introduced. I think this has its pros and cons: it encourages working through ideas without overthinking all the time which is great for getting past a creative block for example, however, sometimes I feel like I need to share my work even when it is premature. The fast pace doesn’t allow ideas for deep work to marinate
What are your hopes for the future?
I hope to build my platform and become more business savvy. After working in the industry for some years I hope to have saved up enough to launch my own brand and launch my own business selling textiles and original fashion garments. I hope to become established in this and expand the business rapidly.
What other creatives should we look out for?
There are so many people I could think of, for some beautiful artwork I would say look at @paintingonmars and @paintbrushandco . For some more textiles/fashion check out my friend @_hadiyah all via Instagram.
Follow Memunatu on Instagram here.
