RUBAYA: Why was there no fashion/model’s category at NAMAS?
For the past 21 years since the National Arts Merit Awards were established, new categories have been added and not all ‘art sectors’ are included in the merits.
The NAMA’s are over, there are some questions that are still being asked by some artists.
However, questions have been raised why the National Arts Merit Awards have always skipped, Fashion and Models categories in the past 21 years. At least some have gone further to ask if fashion and modelling sectors are part of the arts industry.
Fashion Designers have played a major role in the arts industry, local, regional and international. Some of Zimbabwe’s fashion designers are being recognized internationally, and have been awarded numerous times, and someone might say indeed a prophet is not recognised in his on home town.
Fashion Designers are the major players in the any awards occasions, without them they won’t be a ‘red carpet’.
They are the ones along with fashion stylists and wardrobe consultants who run around in the last minutes of the events and weeks before to make sure that all the guests are dressed.
Stepping aside from dressing Nominees during awards, designers also are the ones who do creative costumes for their fellow-artists in cinematography during movie shoots and for musicians who will be performing in live concerts and during shoots for their music videos.
This same can be said about Zimbabwe’s models as far as compared to other artists from other arts sectors. Models have played a pivotal role in flying the country’s industry flag.
Zimbabwe has won several titles and awards in the modelling sector, internationally, but models are yet to be recognised by the National Arts Merit Awards.
The question remains, what will take NAMAs organisers to recognise them while the two sectors are being recognised in local or provincial awards and not national for example Bulawayo Arts Awards, Masvingo Arts Awards and Midlands Arts Awards, Changamire Hip-hop Awards, Mutare Awards among others.
