Bottega Veneta has begun a new cooperation with Air Afrique magazine, a new publication that serves as a venue for the exhibition and discussion of Afro-diasporic art. On June 23, 2023, the publication, which was imagined by a young collective in Paris and was inspired by the pan-African periodicals of the 20th century, will officially premiere with an event that will take place at the Centre Pompidou in Paris.
“We want to revive the African transcendence that Air Afrique represented. Our mission is to preserve this heritage, to put Air Afrique back in the cultural conversation, and to build on their example of cultural engagement,” Lamine Diaoune the founder of Air Afrique shares.
The name “Air Afrique” comes from the pan-African airline that flew between 1961 and 2002 and was co-owned by the countries of Senegal, Central African Republic, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Gabon, Benin, Burkina Faso, Mauritania, Niger, Congo, and Chad. The airline was in operation between 1961 and 2002. The airline evolved into a significant supporter of arts and culture in addition to serving as a mode of international transit, making it not only an essential manifestation of countries that have only just attained their independence but also of a specific pan-African ideal.
A limited edition set of blankets designed by Franco-Sudanese designer Abdel El Tayeb, who works in the Bottega Veneta design atelier, will also be made available by Bottega Veneta. Each blanket is a one-of-a-kind creation made from the finest wool, silver leather, and shearling sourced from the archive of Bottega Veneta and was specially commissioned by Matthieu Blazy to commemorate the opening of the zine project
Discover more of the Limited Edition Bottega Veneta blanket collection n our gallery:
