Saturday, December 9th the Weekend of Global Cultures will kick off, in the Tropenmuseum in Amsterdam. The event revolves around innovative developments in pop culture and the effect they have on our current society. Artist, activist, and academics, asked themselves: “how do hip-hop, cultural heritage, fashion, and identity influence our current society and vice versa?” The exposition consists of three programs in which those questions will be answered: Fashion Fest, Diasporic Fashion, and Hip-hop Museum.

Fashion Fest

The event starts Saturday afternoon with the finale of the fashion competition, Fashion Fest. During this finale, 64 designers will showcase their designs on a catwalk built in the monumental Light hall of the museum.

Diasporic Fashion

Later in the day, fashion designer Grace W. Bonner, stylist Majid Karrouch, and moderator Anima Whittaker will host a talk in the Diaspora Fashion program about fashion, inclusiveness, gender, and activism. In 2016 Grace won the Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy award for her innovative interpretation of gender in fashion.

Hip-hop & activism

During the Hip-hop Museum program, various artist and activist discuss the significance of activism in hip-hop culture. Head designers of fashion brands Patta (Gee Schmidt) and Pigalle (Stephane Ashpool), will give multiple presentations, followed by performances of spoken word artist, Mariana Hirschfield, and rapper, Massih Hutak.  There’s also other stuff to do besides attending lectures. During the collecting hip-hop expo, you can attend a DJ Workshop for Women, as part of an activist photography project against gender discrimination.