Her journey with hair started when she was 15 years old in the township of Alexandra, Johannesburg.
Initially, she was doing people’s hair for pocket money but then she developed a love for it.
When her mother couldn’t afford to take her to university after she matriculated at the age of 17, she enrolled herself to study hair and cosmetology at the Alex technical college.
That is how it all began for the internationally renowned hairstylist and make-up designer who is celebrating 30 years in the industry this year and counting.
Throughout the course of her career, she has headed make-up duties in music videos for stars such as Brenda Fassie, R Kelly, Bill Clinton, Chris Rock and Anthony Anderson, just to name a few.
Mpho Queen-Mary Motlatle has also worked on the faces of presidents Nelson Mandela, Thabo Mbeki and Jacob Zuma.
Productions she has worked on include the District 9 film, Walt Disney’s The Lion King and Beauty and the Beast, as well as Netflix’s local films and series.
Describing her three decades in the industry as illustrious is an understatement.
Her accolades are endless as her formidable skills have earned her the director seat in make-up rooms for the FIFA Soccer World Cup in 2010, AFCON ceremonies in 2013, ANC centenary ceremony in 2012 and several award ceremonies including the South African Music Awards, Metro awards Sports awards and many more.
Read More | Ntando Duma loves playing troublemaker Bhibhi, who causes havoc on Shaka Ilembe
Proudly talking to Drum, she simply says, “What drives me as a hair and make-up designer is the entire process from visualising, conceptualising, creating and seeing the final product comes to life.”
Every Sunday now at 8pm on Mzansi Magic, several Southern African countries get to fall in love with her work more and more as the Shaka iLembe story unfolds.
Since its debut on TV screens, the drama series has worked its way up to the top trending topics on social media. Some critique while others commend the creative elements that bring the story to life.
For Queen, the inspiration had to come from nowhere else but the late 17th and 18th centuries.
“The creative ideas were sparked by the African history and its origins. Who we are, where we are from, how our ancestors were living, where they lived, what they ate, how they kept themselves groomed, how they kept their hair, their skin care and hair products from natural resources were used at that time.
“I wanted to tell the story of the beauty of natural hair and demonstrate the shapes and styles that were done in the 17/18th centuries. Also, to showcase the creativity that was in those eras that we get to still celebrate and do to date,” she says.
From one kingdom and clan to the other, there is a variation of creativity to emulate and align with the royal positions.
Detailing it all, she says, “With regards to the royalty positions, I showcased how the Zulu royalty originally wore their hair in terms of hierarchy from maidens, maids, queens, queen mothers, warrior and the villagers. The hairstyles and different colour beads were the maps of that era, people were identified by the shapes and styles of their hair. As you continue to watch the show, you will see that the each and every paramount (clan) has different hairstyles and shapes, some of the shapes were inspired by the shapes of their huts that they lived in.”
While Zulu queens are known for wearing Isicholo which is made out of natural hair, the Ndwadwe and Mthethwa queens respectively had different ways of wearing their natural crowns. It is all in the artificial accessories, technique and shapes of the hair.
The owner and CEO of House of Queen grooming company did extensive research over the six years that the production has been in the works.
“It was interesting to know about our origins, the history of our hair, how it grew naturally and how creative our ancestors were, the artwork and the pride they took in grooming themselves in the most artistic way that is so mind blowing.”
What was most interesting for her though was the tools that people back then used to carve, shape, and build huge hairdos with limited natural resources at that time.
She found it even more interesting recreating everything from scratch.
“Most pieces were done with synthetic hair, mostly afro kinky and afro twist. We used wire and other raw materials to support the structures of the head pieces. It took a lot of time of hand-weaving and beading these master pieces.
“The grooming process started with fittings and measurements; every headpiece was custom made. Boxes and boxes of hair pieces were bought to create these master pieces, some of our cast had natural hair and we built pieces to add to their natural hair. Some had relaxed or processed hair that we had to cleverly hide. I had to be very mindful as to how I design a headpiece taking into consideration how I am going to install on the day. The attaching, removing and maintenance of the head pieces played a very important role in my designing,” she tells Drum.
Read More | Meet Ntando Zondi, the boy who plays young Shaka on Shaka Ilembe
Seeing the final picture of her hard work on the much-anticipated series has not only been exciting but also humbling for her, especially because of how all the creative elements complement each other.
“I am overwhelmed by the love we receive every Sunday when people are watching the show, the compliments are well received and appreciated. For me, as the designer, it gives me joy and satisfaction to be able to recreate and bring back our history to life and be able to tell a story through hair.”
Her excitement transcends beyond seeing her work on the TV screen. She witnesses the hair designs being used in traditional weddings and ceremonies.
“I am excited for our future generations celebrating their beautiful natural hair and realising that we are beautiful as Africans [and] we do not need any chemical to ruin our original hair.
"A legacy that was passed on to us by our ancestors back then is still current to date.”
