Community of elegant people: How dudes from Congo live

Photo report by Francesco Giusti about members of the SAPE community (Société des Ambianceurs et des Personnes Élégantes - Community of Elegant People) from the Republic of Congo.

Even during the war in the capital of the Republic of Congo, Brazzaville, the SAPE society did not cease to exist. With the arrival of the French in the Congo in the early twentieth century, local youth serving the settlers learned the meaning of elegance. In 1922, Andrè Grenard Matsoua, famous for his anti-settler beliefs, was the first Congolese to return from Paris dressed as a real French “monsignor” - and was enthusiastically received by his fellow citizens.

Today, SAPE members consider themselves artists and are respected and admired by the entire community.

This dress code encourages making your own clothes, choosing the right accessories, and striving to be one and only.

SAPE members, with their elegant clothes and impeccable style, make the miserable reality around them a little more attractive.

Each member of society has his own unique set of gestures that distinguishes him from others.

Elegance is not their only characteristic feature. First of all, every SAPE member is a gentleman and a pacifist.

Every weekend, members of society with funny and unusual nicknames gather in bars and fashionable discos or parade through the streets to the admiring glances of children and the applause of passers-by.

These impromptu parades express the hope that non-violence and elegance will soon become the norm of city life.

They reflect the desire of young people to feel like members of society.