africanbeauty | TOSINGER'S BLOG

During my stint as an Editor-at-large for Applause Africa magazine, I wrote a feature on a darling pearl of Uganda, Hasifa Meriam Kivumbi, who is a dancer and a social entrepreneur with a touching story to tell, this would be the beginning of a budding sisterhood and an eventual program partnership in the coming weekend. I am so excited about the second edition of my Afrodreamfest project- Afrodreamfest Houston 2014 which will be a benefit concert/silent auction to support Hasifa’s platform/project Clean Water for Uganda and my new NGO – Adopt – A – Guitar. See flyer. Hasifa is the current, running Miss Uganda USA 2014 aiming for the Miss Africa USA 2014 crown. She undoubtedly has the beauty .. and the brains, the passion… and the drive to give back to the community and especially her continent.

Get to know Hasifa Meriam

Hasifa Meriam Kivumbi is the creator of 180 degrees, a non-profit organization with a mission to “create doors in places where there were once walls” through motivation, inspiration and celebration of personal achievements. As a representative of Uganda, she has taken on the challenge to partner with the Global Water Partnership in their efforts to create a water secure world by 2020 as her platform. In 2012, Miss Kivumbi was crowned Miss. UNAA (Uganda North American Association) and has since been working on bridging the gap in personal achievement between continental Africans and Africans in the Diaspora through 180 Degrees.
Miss Kivumbi has been serving her community for years and has received many accolades for her passion for life and compassion towards others. In 2012, she was named the year’s Local Hometown Hero by the Modern Woodmen of America Fraternal Organization. She has been highlighted for her talents in dance, writing and modeling in the New York magazine Applause Africa and has been featured in many beauty publications including BHF Fashion and Photography magazine.

Do not be fooled however, Miss Kivumbi is more than just a pretty face; she has a passion for learning and education. In 2010, she was initiated into the National Society of ‘Who is Who’ among American Students. In her professional life, she owns an independent beauty consulting business that she uses to motivate and inspire women to feel their most beautiful both inside and out. For three years now she has served as a website weaver for Helpothers.org, an online community of over 1 million participants. The website encourages people to change the world through small and random acts of kindness. She has served as the spokesperson for the Breast Cancer Initiative of East Africa and wishes to share her journey and experiences in humanitarianism in her upcoming book. Currently her energy is directed towards improving the lives of the people of her native Uganda with the Clean Water for Uganda Project

Hear her speak:

To follow Hasifa’s journey to become the next Miss Africa USA 2014, like her Facebook page here, and to support her CWUP platform click here.

Beautifully Dreaming… Positively Doing..

xoxo

Tosinger

The beauty of the African people, the culture, the aesthetically appealing artistry and artifacts has always been a source of exotic wonder and inspiration for further creativity for other parts of the world, even if with an incorporation – a merge of other elements (from other cultures) . Russia is on the spotlight today, I know there is crisis going on right now and hope issues get sorted soon. However, I came across a carefully crafted piece of African inspired artwork done with the ‘Headwrap or Gele‘ as the focal point. Very beautiful and creative shoot, with the use of well placed patterns, colors, form, texture done for the Russian Architectural Digest (not fashion or visual arts), interior design ad campaign for their textile department. The visual art kind of reminded me of Kehinde Wiley and Yinka Shonibare ‘s work , naturalistic and renaissance in appearance while incorporating African elements.

Ironically, Russia was nos 2 on the list of worst countries for blacks to visit according to a January 2014 Atlanta BlackStar article. (Read for details). I am not sure of the authenticity of this claim since I have not visited Russia to share any first hand experiences. According to the piece:

Black visitors will also have to be extra careful when they venture outside of Moscow into the rest of Russia. In a chilling warning, the Russia expert of New Republic, Julie Ioffe, said, “There’s quite a bit of violence against people considered to be Black” in Russia, raising new fears about the safety of Olympic athletes, visitors and media attending the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi. Ioffe warned that nowhere in Russia is safe for a person of color to visit, outside of Moscow’s city center. – @ATLBlackStar

After all is said and done, there is no doubt that the continent and her people are a source of attraction for aesthetic and cultural inspiration . Here’s the AD Magazine Russia photos below- Taking Headwraps and Fabrics to a Whole New Level for their ad campaign for designer fabrics/textile division. Enjoy!

PHOTO CREDITS

Photographer Olga Volkova Tuponogova-
Stylist: Natalia Obukhov
Model: Keshia Asiedu
Producer: Maria Kuznetsova
Makeup artist: Polina Karpov / MaestroArtExtraordinary
Assistant Photographer: Konstantin Egon
Assistant Stylist: Katerina Konyushenko