The documentary 'The Importance of being Elegant' tells the story of one of the most unusual clubs in the world: La SAPE. Its followers,the Sapeurs, mostly come from the Democratic Republic of Congo and have elevated fashion to the status of a religion. Despite extreme economic hardships the Sapeurs will only settle for the likes of Roberto Cavalli, Versace, Burberry and other design labels.
Set to the soundtrack of Congo’s extraordinary music, the film follows spiritual father, Papa Wemba, the world-famous musician known as ‘Le Roi De La Sape’(The King of la Sape). The documentary is a splendid evocation of Papa Wemba’s music, but it is also an unusual insight into what it means to be an immigrant in contemporary Europe
The documentary is screened as part of the International Art programme of the Prince Claus Fund and the Amsterdam Fund for the Arts (AFK). The movie is shown within the Shadow Cities series of De Verdieping. De Verdieping is the cultural project space underneath club and restaurant TrouwAmsterdam.
In collaboration with the African Hip Hop Foundation a Spoken Word artist will give an introduction to the film and afterwards among other there is a musical programme featuring African hiphop.
http://www.trouwamsterdam.nl/en/2010/05/the-importance-of-being-elegant/#more-6501
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