Growing up in a society where Black hair was not celebrated enough made it a challenge for most Black girls to wear their natural hair with pride. Back then, some schools didn't even allow Black girls to wear protective styles like braids. However, in recent years, the game changed; Black women started learning about and embracing their kinks and coils. Like girls with long and straight hair, Black girls also wanted to wear their afros without being discriminated against. In 2016, Zulaikha Patel, who was only 13 at the time, led a march against Pretoria Girls’ High School to challenge its policy regarding Black girls’ hair. Her bravery encouraged not only her peers, but many Black women across the globe to wear their natural hair with pride. 

Nikiwe Dlova, a hair artist from a township in Johannesburg called Soweto, is one of very few creatives who makes crowns that represent black hair. She expresses the beauty of Black culture and heritage using hair as her canvas, be it an art or headpiece, hairstyle or fashion.

Dlova learned how to braid hair in early childhood when she would occasionally plait her cousin's hair. However, it wasn’t until 2018 that she paid more attention to her unique talent. “My hair artist journey began in 2018 when I decided to provide a service for creative hairstyles because I saw a gap in that field. Then I decided to have a pop-up hair salon at Basha Uhuru Festival at the Constitutional Hill,” says Dlova. She then started doing more pop-ups at local markets but stopped when she realised that some people didn’t feel comfortable getting their hair done by a stranger. “I then started creating headpieces for people's convenience when they go to events or for shoots, etc. And I wanted to remind people of how beautiful and versatile our African hair is,” she adds. 

Holiday Hair: The Perfect ‘do for a Hassle-Free Festive Season

The birth of hair street culture

Dlova used her Clothing Management qualification from the University of Johannesburg to launch OwnUrCrown, a hair street culture brand. She designed the perfect headpieces, understood the business of hair and different textiles to explore. Like many artists, whenever she has an idea, she executes it and lets it come to life on its own. As a fashionista, Dlova sometimes gets her inspiration from fashion, and most of the time, she listens to her intuition. She chose this form of art because she wanted to teach people to be courageous and that they have the power to take their creative skills to the next level.

"I like showcasing how hair extensions can be used as a textile form by weaving and sewing braided hair extensions by hand to create a visual story. I am interested in how people choose to express themselves through their hair. Not only how they style it with their clothing, but also how they interact with hair in the spaces they occupy. Combining history, design, and culture helps me tell the story of how versatile hair is without limitations," she says. 

Levelling up

Dlova has worked with a number of brands, including Stylin’ Dredz, Darling Hair, and Black Crown, to name a few. She has also styled prominent figures such as former Miss South Africa, Shudufhadzo Musida, South African artists, Boity Thulo, Msaki, Busiswa Gqulu and Kenyan comedian, Elsa Majimbo. One of her biggest career highlights was when the headpieces she created for Nandi Madida and Busiswa Gqulu were featured on Beyoncé’s Black Is King visual album. “Busiswa is one of my clients, so when she got a call that they’d be shooting a video for 'My Power,' she wanted us to be involved. And it’s funny because this was something we discussed earlier when the song came out. So when it was official, we had to be ready with Bonolo Gabuza, the founder of Beezy BraidsZA,” says Dlova. 

She adds that she only had two days to make the headpiece and didn’t mind sacrificing her sleep because it was for Beyoncé’s video, “We didn't even know if the headpiece was going to be used because they had a team for Busiswa in Los Angeles, but I did it just in case. So when I saw that she wore the piece I was so happy. It meant a lot. Also, seeing Madida in one of my headpieces took the feeling to another level. It was a reminder to consistently believe in myself no matter what because that will make it easier for people to do the same.” Now that her brand, OwnUrCrown, has grown tremendously, Dlova wants to focus more on hosting exhibitions. In August 2018, she showcased her work at the Black Hair Matters Exhibition, curated by Phumzile Twala at Eyethu Art Space. Famous for its night markets as well as for showcasing African contemporary art, Eyethu Art Space is an art gallery situated near the iconic Eyethu Cinema in Soweto.

Natural Hair Stylist, Ncumisa “Mimi” Duma, on Taking Chances and Challenging Educational Systems

In September last year, she hosted her first solo exhibition called Royal Hair Salon at Botho Project Space, a platform that encourages creatives to play around with their artistic freedom and experimentations. The exhibition focused on encouraging guests to reflect on their respective hair journeys. 

As a space created to serve artists and their talents, Botho Project Space sees the Royal Hair Salon exhibition as a declaration of the strength and positivity of Black identity. This is because for so long, Black hair has been stripped of its essential nature. With people like Dlova hosting such exhibitions, Black people are reminded of the beauty that their hair possesses. Another reminder is that even without a protective style, Black hair is beautiful regardless. 

To see more of Dlova’s work, visit ownurcrown.