Presented here are images from Audi Joburg Fashion Weeks for Autumn/Winter 2007 and Autumn/Winter 2008, as well as Kenya Fashion Week 2007.

Started up in 2001 by Vanya and Thando Mangaliso, Sun Goddess has now flourished into one of South Africa's most sought after labels. Vanya and Thando started the Sun Goddess fashion label selling skirts out of the boot of their car.

Thando received his Bachelor in Commerce from the Institut Superior de Gestion in France in 1997, and Vanya has BA Social Science degree from University of Cape Town and a Post Graduate Diploma in Management & Organization.

Sun Goddess was a dream of Thando and Vanya for a long time and they view as making a positive contribution to the reconstruction of the South African identity. The Mangaliso’s have been able to combine Africa's rich heritage with contemporary design, resulting in garments with a strong traditional theme that do not lose their everyday appeal. Their designs are greatly inspired by the original ethnic designs as worn by the people of South Africa.

Today the Sun Goddess team is a pioneering enterprise with a truly revolutionary fashion brand.

The Autumn/Winter 2007 collection included beautiful evening wear and a ready-to-wear range comprising of skirts and dresses that redefined African Couture, classic combination of luxurious browns and chocolate colors as well gorgeous denim dresses with stunning bead finishing’s. The fabulous leather skirts and jackets, long luxurious beads, brown belts and bold clutch bag added a different feel to the Sun Goddess look.

Sun Goddess celebrates legendary South African stories that look back into our heritage and its relevance to our present and our future. The stories are layered in luxurious fabrics, sensual silhouettes, interesting palettes and ancient design aesthetics. We celebrate a regal Africa that transcends time and fashion, one with legends of kings and queens, gods and goddesses. It is about embracing our beautiful heritage. We are also driven by the need to make a positive contribution to the reconstruction of our South African identity.

We get our inspiration from our strong, rich heritage; a guiding principle in our designs - celebration of our divinity as gods and goddesses and the preservation of our culture.

Vanya and Thando Mangaliso

Images and text courtesy of Sun Goddess, Audi Joburg Fashion Week, Represent and Kenya Fashion Week.

Audi Joburg Fashion Week – South Africa’s first annual Autumn/Winter Fashion Week - proved a huge success when it debuted in February 2007. The second season of this exciting addition to the international fashion calendar took place in Sandton, Johannesburg, from March 5 to 8, 2008.

These four days, hosted at The Pavilion Room at the Sandton Convention Centre, featured a line-up of prominent established and exciting emerging designers.

Launched in a pioneering move by African Fashion International, Audi Joburg Fashion Week closed a long-standing gap in the South African fashion calendar, giving the country’s top design talent the first opportunity to showcase Autumn/Winter collections locally on a platform in line with global standards.

African Fashion International also recently welcomed the introduction of newly appointed Creative Director, Deon Redman.

AFI Chairperson, Dr. Precious Moloi-Motsepe said: “The launch of the Autumn/Winter Audi Joburg Fashion Week was indicative of a maturing local fashion industry and is another step closer to ensuring that South Africa emerges strongly in international fashion circles.”

Confirming their commitment to the 2008 Autumn/Winter Collections, Rudi Venter, Audi Marketing Communications Manager, said: “This is our second season as sponsor of Joburg Fashion Week Autumn/ Winter and it has been very exciting to be able to see the best South African designers bring new ideas to life in a world where there is very little originality. And we too place great store on leading the way. At Audi we call it vorsprung.“

Audi Joburg Fashion Week is organised by African Fashion International.

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