Talk – What the fabrics of West Africa tell

Talk – What the fabrics of West Africa tell, at Casa África, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.

The kick-off of our África Vive 2026 is given on Friday, May 8, by this conference titled «Beyond Beauty. What fabrics tell in West Africa», which will be delivered by specialist Laura de la Carrera, founder of Mamah Africa, a pioneering project in Madrid dedicated to the dissemination of African culture through fashion, art, and textile research.

The conference will begin at 7:00 PM in the institution's auditorium and will precede the popular African fashion show that will take place on Saturday, May 9, in the courtyard of Casa África, accompanied by a market featuring Afro-Canarian and African fashion brands established in the Canary Islands.

With a degree in Geography and History, Laura de la Carrera is a gallerist and designer entrepreneur who shares a brand with her sister Maica, bringing a cultural and outreach perspective to the Mamah Africa project. Both became connected to the African continent in the late nineties, and their journey stems from a deeply personal and family connection. It was their older brother, Nicolás, who, after settling in Dakar, introduced them to the fascinating universe of African textiles. From that moment, what began as a discovery transformed into a vocation that, over more than two decades, has led them to travel numerous countries on the continent, working closely with local artisans and deepening their knowledge of traditional techniques and the symbolism of African textiles. This experience has allowed them to specialize in what they call “the language of fabrics,” understanding each print as an expression of cultural identity and a vehicle for transmitting stories.

Maica de la Carrera, trained in Fashion Design, has been developing two collections a year since 1997, fusing contemporary aesthetics with traditional African fabrics, opting for artisanal processes and collaborations with textile cooperatives, especially in Mali and Senegal. Her work highlights the chromatic richness, the quality of natural materials, and ancestral dyeing techniques. However, since its creation in 1999, Mamah Africa has evolved from a fashion brand to become a multidisciplinary space that integrates a gallery, showroom, and cultural center. Currently located in Navacerrada (Madrid), the project hosts exhibitions, workshops, literary presentations, and activities that foster intercultural dialogue and the visibility of contemporary African art.

Among its most notable initiatives is the itinerant exhibition project “The Language of Fabrics in West Africa,” developed by the Mamah Africa Cultural Association, created with the aim of researching, preserving, and disseminating the textile richness of the continent. Artist Ricardo Álvarez also participates within the framework of this association. This project was inaugurated in 2018 at the National Museum of Anthropology and has toured various institutions and cultural and Africanist events, such as África Imprescindible, in Pamplona. It is a proposal that also integrates the perspective of renowned photojournalist Kim Manresa, whose images sensitively and deeply document the textile processes and the communities that make them possible. This work is expanded with “Blue Africa. Stories woven in indigo,” an exhibition research focused on traditional dyeing techniques, which has traveled both through Spain and African countries such as Nigeria and Mali, and this year, will be in Benin.

Committed to sustainability and direct work with local communities, Laura and Maica regularly collaborate with textile cooperatives, such as the one in Bamako, where ancestral techniques like bogolan are preserved. Their work contributes not only to cultural dissemination but also to the recognition of the social and economic value of artisanal work. Currently, and within the framework of Women's Month 2026, they are showcasing the exhibition «Bubi Woman in African Fabric» by Equatorial Guinean artist Bësákkò Biá Rihólè in their gallery.