The NN•07 Worldmap.
We are no Nationality. A clothing brand with a different way of looking at the world, and sometimes a different way of doing things. We travel the world to get photos for our catalogues. There are no borders or boundaries for us. Our models are people we meet in our lives or on the streets. So far, we’ve published the: Streets of Paris, Nomads of Morocco, Restaurants in New York, Swedish Countryside, Russian Experience, The Tokyo Take, Argentinian Tango and Icecold Iceland. This time we travelled south. To Africa, to Kenya. There, in the village of Wangala we met the most wonderful people ever. The Maasai-poeple. Welcome to Africa.
Welcome to Voi, Wangala in Kenya, Africa. As always, our journeys start with an idea and sometimes coincidences. This journey was one of those things that just happened. We had a friend who had been working with a charity project in Voi – close to where a Maasai tribe lives. People with histories and stories to tell always fascinated us. The Maasai are no different. Historians think the Maasai have existed for more than 3000 years. They’re proud people who kept their culture, clothes and traditions – no matter what’s happened in the world around them. They’ve kept their colorful clothes, while the rest of the world has been changing. From 17th century wigs, powdered faces, and crinoline shirts – to 18th century tweed suits and so on... They didn’t care about the 1930s’ jazz trend, the 1950s’ jeans revolution, the 1960s’ hippie era, or the 1980s’ yuppies. In many ways, they’re true to themselves and their traditions, and some might look strange when filtered through our culture-tainted eyes. Still we must respect the Maasai for having lived by their rules all those years. This catalogue is a tribute to the Maasai of Wangala. To their outstanding pride and timeless style. To Emanuel, Noah, and all the other young men who were our models during our journey. Thank you. You are the true originals of tomorrow. Now we know. Read more about our journey...
WARMEST PEOPLE WE EVER MET Through all of our journeys, we’ve never met people like the Maasai. Ever. We’ve never seen their warmth, kindness, and happiness any other place in the world. And we’ve been around. The Maasai live in huts made from mud, sticks, and cow dung. Their floors are soil, and their windows are small holes in the wall. They cook their food over open fires, and there’s no electricity. Yes: they have cell phones and flashlights. But that’s it. No fancy cars, shiny shoes, or big flat screen TVs. They don’t wear golden watches or expensive rings. What they lack in material things, they own in tenfold when it comes to spiritual things. We took these precious gifts home with us – gifts we’ve help closely to our hearts: their daily laughter, singing, jumping, and joy.
ARRIVING AT WANGALA After practical errands at the airport, like finding lost luggage, and then a four-hour ride in the car, we arrived at the village on a late Saturday afternoon. First the kids came. Running. Then the men came. And then the women. They were expecting us. Soon the entire village was welcoming us with songs, dance, and warm greetings. We shook the hand of everyone, including all the kids and Yohanna, the tribe chief. We got a tour through the small village and then decided to come back the next day to launch our photo shoot.
STARTING THE PHOTO SHOOT We arrived on Sunday morning about the same time that the church ceremony started (Wangala residents are Christians). Naturally, we attended the church service in what we would call an ordinary small shed. But the singing we heard coming through open doors, hundred meters away, was everything but ordinary. If you want to hear the voice of Namyak, visit our web site to see and hear her singing – we just had to record her. After this fantastic introduction, things just got better. We spent three more days in the village with Maasai warriors. Three of them joined us on a safari in the Tsavo National Park, where we saw four of THE BIG FIVE. We made so many new friends during these few days. A humbling experience.
BEADS AND SOME HELP TO THE VILLAGE We still wear the other gifts they gave us: colorful, beaded bracelets and necklaces that they wear and sell to passing tourists to earn money – items made in their village. We asked them if we could buy some more of the beaded items. We could. We bought 5000 of them. One for each catalogue we make. One of them is in your catalogue. We also wanted to contribute in some way. Money is not everything but a little can go a long way. They need to build a new school and church. Our contribution is what we earn from this catalogue. That’s why this is the first time that we’ve asked you to pay a small amount for it. All the money goes directly to the village.
Thank you for joining us on our journey. Welcome to Wangala.
Arriving to the village
One day in Tsavo East National Park
Back to manyatta Wangala for dinner
The road through Tsavo
The entrance to Wangala village
Fabric: NN•07. Model: Salmon
The welcoming when arriving to the village
Emanuel, Jacob, Maiko, Julias, and Noah
Musa close to Wangala
Musa close to Wangala
Gathering close to Wangala
Painting: Maasai. Shirt: NN•07
Wearing shorts in Wangala
X, Emanuel, X, Osupat and Maiko jumping
Emanuel, Musa, Julias, Noah, Jacob and Maiko
Jumping close to Wangala
Solomon, Luka and Saimon
Emanuel in Wangala
Details, cotton and beads
Salmon, Luka, Sarkai, Saimon, Solomon Luka and Joshua
Namyak on the way back to her hut
Portrait of Lendizi
Running competition in the village
Portrait of Noah
Julias in the village at sunset
Maiko outside one of the huts
One of the red elephants of Tsavo
A close encounter with elephants
Jumping competition in Wangala
Julias entering Tsavo east national park
A female lion hiding her breakfast for us
Tsavo east national park
Julias at the Mudanda Rock in Tsavo
Noah, Julias and Emanuel at Mudanda Rock
Portrait of Julias
Emanuel, Noah and Julias at Mudanda Rock
Mwae and Kiserian bringing home the goat
Namyak, our singing girl and chief Yohanna
Julias in traditional bead bracelet
Maiko wearing camo and chinos for the first time
Portrait of Musa
Osupat wearing blue outerwear
Portrait of Emanuel
Solomon in dotted shorts
Xxxxx jumping outside Wangala
Julias in the village
Jacob cooling down after running competition
Noah and Julias
Noah wearing blue camo
Musa matching shirt with sunset
Solomon and Osupat
Solomon, Emanuel, Jacob, Osupat and Maiko
Solomon and some younger friends
Musa and Emanuel
Julias, Noah and Emanuel at Mudanda Rock in Tsavo
Production: Firewater. Photo: Superstudio.