Californian-born Tukula Ntama had no idea where her trip to Jamaica over 30 years ago would take her.

AW Fashion presents Tukula Ntama: decorator, artist, designer and the person who created the caftan worn by heiress Paris Hilton on a recent visit to GoldenEye Jamaica with supermodel Naomi Campbell.

AW Fashion (AWF): Who is Tukula Ntama?

Tukula Ntama (TN): Tukula Ntama is a unique visual artist who creates one-of-a-kind artwork on any fabric, any object that will stand still long enough to allow her to transform it with her magic. Her artworks range from bold, vibrant paintings and exquisite pencil drawings to masks created from reclaimed materials to funky functional furniture and flamboyant clothing. From Northern California, Tukula has made Jamaica her home for the last 34 years and feels blessed to live and work in Jamaica where the beauty of nature, people and colours provide non-stop fire for her imagination.

AWF: Are you self-taught or did you attend school?

TN: I have a BA in Fine Art from the University of California, Santa Cruz. I studied painting; drawing and print-making. I make a lot of clothing. I consider myself an artist who also makes clothes — having particular interest in fabrics. I have always enjoyed fabrics, textures and patterns, especially African prints or handmade, hand-woven, embroidered and/or hand-dyed fabrics. I’ve acquired fabric from all over the world, including Africa, India, and Guatemala. I work with fashion designers, too; in fact, I have made fabrics for local designer Sandra Kennedy in the past. I painted a collection for Jackie Cohen of Mutamba Fashion, Ites International, Ngozi Aleme and Mary McMorris. I recently painted silks for Courtney Washington. My work is very simple and ‘rootsy’ and roughly made. It is wonderful to see the fabrics used by the different designers; I admire the more constructed pieces, especially because they — the silks, in particular — sparkle like jewels.

AWF: How did you get started in fashion designing?

TN: I started experimenting with fabrics many years ago by silk-screening T-shirts and scarves with my designs, practising with fabric painting for years until I figured out how to get the look I wanted. I used a variety of techniques with hand-painting. I’ve also used silk screen, block printing and tie-and-dye or combinations of all three to get a look.

AWF: Explain your design process.

TN: I paint or dye large pieces of fabric, a two-yard piece up to sometimes 10 yards. One of the reasons I like painting fabrics is that I get to paint big, bright and bold. I may have an idea of how I want the fabric to look, that is, the colours or shape patterns, however, sometimes it comes out like I envisioned; other times the magic takes over and something completely different is created. Now, with clothing, most of my pieces nowadays are simple and unconstructed. After I paint the fabrics, I create a design with little or no cutting. I find a style that suits the painting. Most of the pieces are simply hand-sewn, and embellished with beads. The clothing created by other designers with my fabrics reflects their design aesthetics and skills.

AWF: What products do you use in your artwork/designs?

TN: For my designs, I’ve only used natural fabrics like silks, cottons, linen and rayon. Natural fibres are the best. They allow your body to breathe and dyes work best with these fabrics. With my artwork, I love playing with different media. I will paint on anything, create with anything. I like to use natural and recycled material such as driftwood, found objects, paper; all great by themselves or in combinations.

AWF: What is your design aesthetic?

TN: Nature is always one of my inspirations. The beauty of the sea, plants, flowers, birds, etc. I also work to reflect all those ancient and indigenous cultures, but with a contemporary feel: “a new ancient-cy”.

AWF: Describe the woman who wears Ntama Art pieces.

TN: Ntama Art pieces are worn by the person who wants to wear something different and unique. Though they are unisex pieces, Ntama Arts caters primarily to women. The clothes look crazy stylish yet are made for comfort. The woman who wears Ntama Art pieces has a fabulous sense of style; she can wear a sarong over her bikini or casually dress up a caftan with pants and accessories to make a statement. She is confident, she knows how to enter a room and command attention. The Ntama woman can be a college student, a professor, a celebrity or just about any other woman who wants to look and feel special in beautiful colours and fine fabric. We are all special!

AWF: What other ways do you showcase your talent?

TN: I am an artist first. I love to make new things so I try it all. I make paintings and drawings. I’ve painted furniture, shoes and even a car. I enjoy the creative process: combining unusual elements and textures to make something beautiful.

AWF: Share the history of your relationship with the GoldenEye Resort.

TN: I started a partnership with the GoldenEye Resort some years ago through a project I was a part of for Island Outpost’s Oracabessa Foundation with a class of children. We painted murals for their school. Then for a few special events, a group of artist friends and I would showcase our hand-made pieces and teach some kind of craft. That evolved into individual group teaching sessions, where we provided art classes for the guests when requested. When GoldenEye expanded, designer Dawn Scott had the idea to feature driftwood. She called on me to implement her ideas. I collected tons of driftwood and we created the fences, arches and the lattice work that now decorates the property. The driftwood work expanded to include a beautiful driftwood bar, massive driftwood partitions and driftwood mirrors. An idea came from Island Outpost to use album cover photos and pictures mostly of Africa to decorate the concrete columns in the Bizot Bar. I was thrilled to work with the images. So now when I look about the Bizot Bar area — with the exception of the fabulous driftwood chandeliers designed by St Mary artist David Gordon — it is mostly my designs. I am called upon every now and again for a special piece or to teach an art class. The gift shop shows my work, my silk pieces, cotton beach wraps and clothing, plus some jewellery pieces.

AWF: And your feelings when you saw Paris Hilton in your design?

TN: I was ecstatic! It made me happy. She’s a great example of the Ntama Art woman.

AWF: Where can your designs/artwork be purchased?

TN: My work is available at GoldenEye Resort, the Harmony Hall Gallery in Ocho Rios, from the designers who use Tukula Ntama fabrics and by contacting me.

AWF: Where can customers contact you?

TN: My work is on Facebook at facebook.com/tukulantama; and via e-mail: tukulantama@yahoo.com. I collaborate with other artists to create a seasonal event in Kingston to showcase our work, called Take A Five.