Design Indaba Expo beats the crunch

Despite the tough economic climate, Design Indaba Expo 2009 is pleased to report that it has grown with more than 60 new exhibitors and has secured more than 20% extra floor space since 2008. With a month to go until the event, already more than 100 buyers have pre-registered, including 70 international buyers.

Buyers and consumers who attend the Design Indaba Expo can expect fresh, original, contemporary South African innovations, curated by an advisory panel of the best South African designers, stylists, critics and industry experts. The Expo has long been a proudly South African event, with visitors and buyers experiencing the cream of South Africa's design initiatives in areas as diverse as fashion, jewellery, architecture and graphic design.

While many of the buyers will attend on their own steam, 13 are being sponsored by the DTI, a longstanding Design Indaba partner, which feels that Expo promotes international opportunities for South African entrepreneurs. Unlocking economic value is key, which is why increasing awareness of South African creativity is so important.

Christine Holenweg from Cape Sun Fair Trade Import in Switzerland was hosted by the DTI and said Expo was "a great opportunity to meet suppliers from different areas".

In 2005, the DTI-supported foreign buyers logged purchases in excess of R1 million, while in 2006 over R1,5 million was spent. This figure rose to above R3 million in 2007.

A total of 265 buyers attended Design Indaba Expo 2008, 100 of these from countries as diverse as Spain, Bangladesh, the United States, Sweden, Japan, the United Kingdom, Norway, France, Germany, The Netherlands, South Korea, Canada and more. During the course of 2008, an estimated R40 million worth of business was done between the 265 buyers and Design Indaba Expo exhibitors.

Cristina Ilzarbe from Danye in Spain said she would attend Expo again "to strengthen relationships with suppliers and to look for new suppliers as well".

Daniel During from Thomas Klein Dubai felt Expo was worthwhile: "It exceeded my expectations. I expected to see new products and ideas, and establish contacts, but I actually left having placed many orders."

Allana Reid from Afrikana Gallery in Australia says Expo has a "fantastic selection of suppliers" and is "all-over brilliant".

Local buyers numbered 141, representing 65 companies, including @home, Big Blue, Milieu and Woolworths. Shannon Johnstone from Fat Tuesday in Pretoria had this to say: "Design Indaba Expo is perfect for sourcing good quality, innovative and South African-produced products. I would attend again to keep up with trends."

Beyond commerce, Design Indaba Expo exhibitors have gone on to become household names in design. Eco-light designer Heath Nash, for example, went on to participate in 100% London and 100% Tokyo in previous years, having gained significant exposure and contacts at Expo. Tsai Design received a Red Dot award for its Nested Bunkbeds, which were first shown at Expo. In turn, Design Afrika's Xhosa gourd baskets are being distributed worldwide through the Conran Stores.

While regular exhibitors will be returning, more than 60 new kids on the block will be bringing fresh approaches and inspiration to the party. "Something for everyone" is not an exaggeration – at Expo, buyers and visitors will find plenty to please the eye and the pocket.

www.designindabaexpo.com

DESIGN INDABA CONFERENCE 2009: What can your creativity do?

It has been proven time and time again: ordinary Africans have an innate creativity and ingenuity.

Consider Stellenbosch resident Colin Vale who developed a paraffin stove that extinguishes itself when bumped over, reducing the chance of shack fires. Or Malawian William Kamkwamba who created a wind turbine from scrap and bicycle parts to light up his house at night. Not to mention Azemeraw Zeleke from Ethiopia, who transforms bombshells into coffee machines. “What can your creativity do?” asks the Design Indaba Conference 2009. Hoping to spur delegates into action, this year will again boast a line-up of more than 30 world leaders in the graphic, product, new media, architecture, fashion and advertising design arenas. From the world’s best chef, Ferran Adrià, to the self-reflexive youngsters at 5.5 design, Design Indaba Conference 2009 has placed no limits on age and creative medium. From the man synonymous with “fabulous”, Marcel Wanders, to the man heralded for explicating the power of design to augment change, Bruce Mau, Design Indaba Conference 2009’s only curatorial guideline is "nothing but the best". And let us not forget Dai Fujiwara, creative director of Issey Miyake! Hailing from India, Mohit Dhar Jayal and Sunil Vysyaprath of W+K Delhi are responsible for Nokia and Incredible !ndia. A number of significant corporate agencies are sure to entice on the advertising front. Hailing from India, Mohit Dhar Jayal and Sunil Vysyaprath of W+K Delhi are responsible for Nokia and Incredible !ndia. In turn, Sean Adams and Noreen Morioka of AdamsMorioka have created the globally recognised visuals associated with Sundance, Nickelodeon and the Walt Disney Company. Patricia Urquiola is said to have designed enough work to fully furnish a large house, inside and out. Besides Wanders and 5.5, on the product design front, Patricia Urquiola is said to have designed enough work to fully furnish a large house, inside and out. As prolific and widely recognised are Jay Osgerby and Edward Barber of BarberOsgerby. Product designer Stephen Burks returns to South Africa following his Aid to Artisans development project in 2006. Leaping the divide between science fiction, product and experience, Anthony Dunne and Fiona Raby of Dunne&Raby explore the psychological impact of technology; while the duo at Commonwealth, David Boira and Zoë Boira Coombes, find new applications for architecture by playing with scale and production. In turn, Nobumichi Tosa’s nonsense machines are sure to boggle the senses. Font, graphic and scripting designer Rick Valicenti of Thirst/3st also takes digital creation beyond the grain. With a decidedly quirky flavour, Frank Tjepkema’s products, interiors, identities and interiors can’t help but make one smile – and then we haven’t even got to Marian Bantjes’s meticulously executed graphic design yet. Font, graphic and scripting designer Rick Valicenti of Thirst/3st also takes digital creation beyond the grain. Also cutting the edge of wit, it is with great pleasure that we welcome Javier Mariscal back after his stupefying presentation at Design Indaba 2003. Other returnees include automobile designer Keith Helfet with South Africa’s first electric car and architect Luyanda Mpahlwa with his solution to the Design Indaba 10x10 Housing project. And, of course, the world’s leading trend forecaster, Li Edelkoort. And this is just a taste of what's to come! Look out for further speaker announcements in upcoming weeks. So, what can your creativity do? Design Indaba Conference 2009 promises to push the limits of your imagination beyond the physical. Click here to register.

The Ultimate Photography Competition – Win a Trip to Barcelona

Focus on the iconic Fairland Development, the new home to WesBank and FNB, and create the perfect picture of one of Johannesburg’s architectural masterpieces when you enter an innovative photographic competition sponsored by Continuum Architects and WesBank.

For Continuum Architects, which brought together some of the country’s foremost architectural practices to create a new home for WesBank, photography and fine architecture are closely linked. The competition encourages the creative minds behind the lenses to delve into the intricacies of form and design to produce the definitive photograph of this iconic building.

The winner can look forward to a trip for two to Barcelona, one of the world’s greatest architectural showcases. Ten runnehttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifrs-up will take home R1 500.

The competition is open to anyone who enjoys photography. Keen photographers, who shoot their pictures either from strategic vantage points within the city or the Fairland grounds, need to submit entries by February 20, 2009.

For further information on the Continuum WesBank Photography Competition, or to download an entry form, visit or e-mail photographycompetition@tynago.co.za

Young Designers Simulcast Bookings Open

YOUNG DESIGNERS INVITED TO A DISCOUNTED DESIGN INDABA CONFERENCE
The Design Indaba Young Designers Simulcast is intended to bring the wit and wisdom of the best of the best to young designers and students under 25.		This live broadcast, from the main plenary session to a second auditorium, means that those youngsters who cannot afford to attend the main Design Indaba Conference will still have access to speakers. They will watch their presentations and have a chance to interact with them at the end of the day in informal chat sessions. At a cost of just R1 000, the future designers of South Africa will experience the foremost creative event in South Africa. Or, for only R1 160 students can get a simulcast ticket and a year’s subscription to the award-winning Design Indaba magazine, which was recently included in the Top 100 Most Innovative Magazines in the World list. Speakers this year include Dai Fujiwara, Issey Miyake’s creative director, as well as product design giant Marcel Wanders, founder of the Moooi boutique, renowned for his gloriously whimsical interior living spaces, furniture and accessories. South Africans may be especially interested in author and designer of Massive Change, Bruce Mau, who is driven by a sense of how design can solve problems (think stoves that burn peanut shells and super-strong fibres modelled on gecko hairs, for example). Then there’s the most famous chef in the world today, Ferran Adrià. More of a culinary scientist than a traditional cook, Adrià doesn’t just give diners food but a total experience. He is famous for his 30-course gourmet menu and sheer unpredictability. Another unpredictable artist is fellow Spaniard Javier Mariscal, whose multidisciplinary work embraces illustration, furniture, sculpture, interior design and more. The 5.5 designers are also a must-see – four designers in their 20s who are redefining design projects in France. Their Furniture Garden and Wallpaper Games are a treat. Interacting with design luminaries, young and older, will give young designers a glimpse of the creative processes behind exceptional work, from the flicker of ideas to the execution of full-scale projects and installations. This will prove invaluable inspiration for the under-25s hoping to forge careers in the creative industries. Book now through Computicket.

Best Chef in the world at Design Indaba 2009

“What’s radical about us rests not on what we serve, but on how and where. In the West, where the problem of hunger has been solved, where obesity is now the issue, the trend has to be more and more about the pleasure of eating, the fun, rather than seeing it as simply a way of satisfying our appetites. At El Bulli we try and take this idea to the nth degree”

Ferran Adrià has been described as the best chef on the planet. His restaurant, elBulli, was voted the World’s Best Restaurant for the fourth time this year. It receives over one million reservation requests a year, where only 8 000 lucky ones get a table. Yet, should one even call him a chef? Or a scientist? Or an artist? A meal – or rather, the experience, lasts for hours, alternating between flavours, temperatures, the surreal and the homely. Fried rabbit ears, for instance, translucently thin and tasting like pork rinds; a frozen gin with hot lemon fizz; spaghetti not topped with Parmesan but fashioned from it; soft-boiled quail egg with a crispy caramel crust; carrots turned into foam, artichokes into puree, and foie gras into ice cream. Slip the reservation list and meet Ferran Adrià at Design Indaba Conference from 25 to 27 February 2009. Click here to register.

Gregor or Adriaan or Heath?

Three of South Africa’s most inspiring designers are to be honoured and rewarded for the massive ‘strides’ they have made in life.

The three - manufacturing designer, Gregor Jenkin, lamp designer Adriaan Hugo and Heath Nash who recycles scrap into funky designs – have been nominated as part of Johnnie Walker’s global celebration of 100 years of its Striding Man Icon.

The 15 “Striders” across 5 fields – Design, Entrepreneurship, Environment, The Arts and Leadership - have been chosen for achieving success in their various fields of endeavour despite numerous challenges and will be honoured in the Johnnie Walker® Celebrating Strides Awards 2008/9.

A panel of judges and the public will select the top finalist in each of five categories and the winners will receive prizes worth around R600 000 in total.

Vote for your favourite in the People's Choice category.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS FROM DESIGN INDABA

Design Indaba wishes you safe, festive and happy holidays.

---

DESIGN INDABA CONFERENCE

Experience the fabulous Marcel Wanders, Dai Fujiwara of Issey Miyake, AdamsMorioka’s real message, 5.5’s challenge to the status quo, Javier Mariscal's theatricalities, Dunne & Raby’s technological futurism and Bruce Mau’s vision for massive change… all at Design Indaba Conference and Young Designers Simulcast from 25 to 27 February 2009. Booking and more information at www.designindaba.com

---

DESIGN INDABA 10x10 HOUSING PROJECT

The first Design Indaba 10x10 house designed by MMA Architects’ principals, Luyanda Mpahlwa and Mphethi Morojele, has been shortlisted for the Design Museum’s Brit Insurance Design of the Year award. On a winning streak, the project received the prestigious Curry Stone Design Prize in September.

Catch up on the latest developments: http://designindaba10x10.blogspot.com/

---

DESIGN INDABA EXPO

Creativity that knows no boundaries. That's what Design Indaba Expo is all about. Elegant lamps made of ostrich feathers; recycled milk bottle caps assembled together in flower mobiles; funky jewellery made from old-fashioned silverware; sophisticated laptop bags crafted from billboard vinyls. These are just some of the ideas that have wowed the crowds over past years – as well as hundreds of influential buyers from across the globe. Come and see the latest on the catwalks in all-day fashion shows, sample the finest in food and drink, vote for the Most Beautiful Object in South Africa, view the short-film festival, be enticed to buy from more than 250 exhibitors and hobnob with the designers in person. Above all, be awed by the creative spirit of innovative South Africans.The Design Indaba Expo is nearly full, to avoid disappointment contact Beverley Cupido on 021 465 9966 or bev@interactiveafrica.com.

---

SOUTH

The SOUTH competition submissions from across the country are currently being adjudicated. The SOUTH exhibition of legends and competition finalists will debut at the 2009 Design Indaba Expo. Then it's time to take the message to the world – stand back Milan, London and New York, here comes SOUTH!

---

ART VESPA 2009: DEADLINE EXTENDED

Some people think that advertisers and designers sit around all day drawing pictures, which doesn’t sound much like hard work at all. Fortunately, Vespa South Africa know this isn’t true, which is why they have announced a deadline extension for Art Vespa 2009. The revised closing date is 15 January 2009. The prize remains, of course, an ultra-stylish Vespa LX150 wrapped in the winning design, which is sure to evoke the envy of less inspired colleagues. Visit http://vespa.co.za/ArtVespa2009 for more info and entry forms.

---

NAMPAK PACKAGING DESIGN CHALLENGE

Nampak invites all professional design studios, agencies and freelance designers to compete in the Nampak Packaging Design Challenge and be acknowledged for creativity in the area of packaging and graphic design.

Entrants in the professional category can either participate as a group/business or as an individual, while the student category will involve pre-selected packaging design students. All you need to do is register in order to qualify.

The deadline for submissions for the Nampak Packaging Design Challenge is 31 January 2009. Winners will be chosen and notified in February and the final exhibition of winning designs will take place at the Design Indaba Expo from 27 February to 1 March 2009, as well as being featured in the Design Indaba magazine. The first prize is an Apple Macbook Pro and the second prize a Wacom tablet.

Click here to download the full entry form.

---

WESTERN CAPE FURNITURE DESIGN COMPETITION

The inaugural Western Cape Furniture Design competition has announced its theme: EAT. The theme seeks to inspire a creative take on furniture that forms part of eating environments – tables, chairs, servers or other furniture in a dining room, outdoor, kitchen or other environments. The competition is open to all professionals and students in the Western Cape and R50 000 worth of prizes are to be won. Entries close on 23 January 2009. Visit www.furniture.org.za for more information and entry details.

JAVIER MARISCAL returns to Design Indaba 2009

“Sometimes, the design process enables us to give new meanings to old forms or new forms to old meanings. In this way, we feel that we are advancing in our work, we are innovating, insinuating or inspiring. So that times still change. So that we are not evident.”

When people ask Javier Mariscal what he does for a living, he sometimes says he’s a tightrope walker and other times he says he’s an acrobat – even when he uses the world of the circus to describe himself, he takes on several jobs. In a circus, he would also be the ring manager, he would design the big top and the staging, he would go up on the trapeze and would be most annoyed if he didn’t find time to feed the elephants. Furniture design, painting, sculpture, illustration, interior design, graphic design, landscape painting, gardening, horticulture and more… since Javier Mariscal’s life and career has been characterised by creative incontinence as vital activity. After wowing the crowds at Design Indaba 2003 with his theatrical multimedia performance, he now returns to the Design Indaba big top. Get ringside seats for Javier Mariscal at Design Indaba Conference 2009, from February 25 to 27. Download Javier Marsical’s iGoogle theme

Book before 12 December 2008 to make use of the Early Bird and Alumni discounts. Click here to register.

DUNNE & RABY challenge the future at Design Indaba 2009

The shift from thinking about applications to implications creates a need for new design roles, contexts and methods. For Anthony Dunne and Fiona Raby it’s not just about designing for commercial, market-led contexts but also for broader societal ones. It’s not just about designing products that can be consumed and used today, but also imaginary ones that might exist in years to come. And it’s not just about imagining things we desire, but also undesirable things — cautionary tales that highlight what might happen if we carelessly introduce new technologies into society. Dunne & Raby use design as a critical medium to explore fields of science such as biotechnology and nanotechnology. Evidence Dolls playfully probes the implications of DNA knowledge between lovers, while Designs for Fragile Personalities in Anxious Times continues their obsession with the psychological impact of an atomised society. It celebrates humans as contradictory, complex and psychologically flawed. Meet the future with Dunne & Raby at Design Indaba Conference, from 25 to 27 February 2009.

“As designers we have an unthinking optimism about the future. We automatically assume that what we design is neutral and implicitly good. There is a deeply embedded ideology that the role of design and architecture is ‘to make the world a better place’. But how do we acknowledge our contradictions, our inconsistencies and celebrate a humanness which, if we admit it, is deeply flawed?" they ask.

Book before 12 December 2008 to make use of the Early Bird and Alumni discounts. Click here to register.

Green Tees from Vida

The Green-T Project is an experiment in recycle, redesign, fashion and photography.

Young fashion designers were given old clothes that were donated by customers of Vida E Caffe and they were created into works of art, designers include: Jule Visnjic (Unknown), Marina Geldenhuys (Sew-Sew), Natasha Liebenberg (LiebenCut), Elmin, Ludwich Olivier.

The recycled garments will feature in a series of images created by rising photographic talents that include Brett Rubin, Natasja Fourie, Carey Niqa Wiehahn, Jesse-Leigh Elford and Justin Badenhorst. A cast of musicians and creatives that include Inge Beckmann (former lead singer of Lark), Jeremy de Tolly (lead singer of The Dirty Skirts), Ellenie Eloff (one-person band Catwalktrash), Lauren Fowler (Illustrator/Graphic Designer) and jewellery designer Philippa Green will star in the images.

The complete collection of images will be presented at vida e caffé, Wembley Square, Gardens on Thursday, 11 December 2008 at 19h30.

The fabulous Marcel Wanders at Design Indaba 2009

Image courtesy of Marcel Wanders Studio

There’s very little in design that is bigger than Marcel Wanders. If his Knotted Chair and Crochet Series are his most iconic, then his most notorious must be his Airborne Snotty Vases, and his most anticipated, the new Mondrian South Beach hotel. The hotel is said to be an extension of the Sleeping Beauty fairytale – when we open our eyes after 100 years, everything will look fabulous!

“Throughout the 20th century, architects and designers strived to produce products that could be made by machines and that would help create welfare, equality and a political foundation for democracy. They created works that celebrated the poor possibilities of the available machinery. In this period bending metal tubes and cutting wood with a machine were considered small miracles,” he wrote in the foreword to 21st Century Design.

See, Wanders believes that machines should heed to humans and that we should all live like princes and princesses – and that’s not a conceited statement. We have the technology, we have the imagination, so what’s stopping us?

Liberate your fabulousness with Marcel Wanders at Design Indaba Conference 2009, from February 25 to 27.

Book before 12 December 2008 to make use of the Early Bird and Alumni discounts. Click here to register.

Poster design competition

WORLD BOOK DAY: 23RD APRIL 2009

Prize Money for winning design: R2 000

1. Background to World Book Day
World Book Day and Copyright Day, 23 April, was instituted by UNESCO in 1995. The Centre for the Book acts as the national co-ordinator of a poster campaign involving schools, libraries and bookshops. The poster is to create awareness and encourages events all over South Africa.

2. Theme for 2009
“UNLOCK YOUR MIND, READ BOOKS”

3. Poster requirements
a. Theme to be included on poster
b. 2009 not to be included – only 23 April
c. Image can be photographic or illustrative
d. Conceptualisation to be directly linked to the theme “Unlock your mind, read books.”
e. Poster to be printed in full colour, size A2
f. Only second part of Theme (“unlock your mind, read books”) to be translated into all official languages.

4. Contact
Please e-mail your poster in either pdf or jpeg format to samantha@publishsa.co.za with your contact details.

5. Deadline
Friday, 16th January 2009

Flat-pack Xmas at the KZNSA Gallery

In collaboration with Design Indaba, the Suss't exhibition at the KZNSA Gallery has some fabulous sustainable design options for festive cheer and pressies. I love this self-assembly flat-packed christmas gear cut from birch ply by designers Richard Stretton and Angela Shaw...

KZNSA GALLERY
166 BULWER ROAD GLENWOOD DURBAN
031 277 1703; WWW.KZNSAGALLERY.CO.ZA

Keep it clean with Design Indaba 2009

Communication through promises, missions, brand DNA and value creation has become relatively risk-free. After all, the medium is the message, right? But in the end, the conglomeration of words and ideas must realise measurable results. So what is the message? AdamsMorioka maintain that a certain level of courage is necessary to produce something real. That courage requires facing fears, but also finding a level of fun. Adams and Morioka approach this with these questions:

• What is the difference between fearless and foolish?
• Why do we do this?
• Where do we want to go?

Beginning as a two-person design firm in the early 1990s, AdamsMorioka have had a meteoric rise in the industry, based on their philosophy of clarity, purity and resonance. Brands such as ABC, Adobe, Gap, Frank Gehry Associates, Nickelodeon, Sundance and the Walt Disney Company will attest to it.

But most importantly, AdamsMorioka don’t just talk, they make the message real.

Get the message at the Design Indaba Conference from February 25 to 27, 2009.

Book before 12 December 2008 to make use of the Early Bird and Alumni discounts. Click here to register.

5.5 question the status quo at Design Indaba 2009

Who can be sure whether green or yellow is the best colour? Whether baroque or gothic is more appropriate? Serif or sans serif? Zig-zags or swirls? Minimalism or maximalism? Whether a designed object is really more valid than its mass produced counterpart? But then, what is design? Is it style or function? Process or end product? Bricks or wallpaper?

Don’t expect to find answers from Paris’s 5.5 design collective – they’ll just riddle you with more questions, invade your assembly line, champion the discontinued product line, mould a cushion from your belly and start a garden in your lounge furniture.

"We ask these questions by designing objects. When you work in a team, it’s impossible to just talk about shape or colour. What has become important for the 5.5 designers is not a question of style, shape, colours or form, but the way that we perceive projects," explains Anthony Lebossé on behalf of the group of four – read the whole interview in the latest edition of Design Indaba magazine.

Don’t miss the opportunity to meet the 5.5 designers in person at Design Indaba from February 25 to 27, 2009.

Book before 12 December 2008 to make use of the Early Bird and Alumni discounts. Click here to register.

Dai Fujiwara of Issey Miyake at Design Indaba 2009

Just last year, Dai Fujiwara unleashed his debut collection as creative director for Issey Miyake on the Paris runway. Of course, Issey Miyake addicts would have been following the rise of this young textile engineer since at least 1998, upon the launch of the award-winning A-Poc series.

A-Poc is an acronym for “a piece of cloth” and describes Fujiwara’s proprietary software-driven design process, which weaves entire pieces of clothing with no sewing necessary. The technique represents a whole new creative, technological and ecological rapid prototyping proposition to the fashion industry.

And don’t even get us started on Fujiwara’s design wedding project that saw some of the world’s most renowned design companies get involved in the big day of an ordinary Finnish couple…

Rather come hear Dai Fujiwara tell you about that himself at Design Indaba 2009.

Book before 12 December 2008 to make use of the Early Bird and Alumni discounts. Click here to register.

Invite to AAA Expo

Night of a 1000Drawings book launch

SOUTH deadline extended until December 8

Enter the SOUTH competition now and stand a chance to win R100 000. What's stopping you? Second place receives R50 000, third place receives R25 000 and all finalists will be included on the SOUTH exhibition, set to travel around South Africa and the world through 2009.

Missed the deadline? Design Indaba are extending the deadline to December 8 so as to accomodate a number of student and professional entrants who could not meet the original SOUTH deadline. All submissions are to be made electronically and finalists will be contacted regarding the final product for exhibition.

Have we mentioned the R100 000?

SOUTH is a multi-disciplinary celebration of what South African creativity really means. We’re not being prescriptive – in fact, we’re asking you what South African creativity is and asking you to embody the answer in whichever creative form you see fit – because it is going to be you that wins the R100 000.

Have we said that already? Let’s say it again: R100 000.

The award is open to all creatives across all industries including advertising, design, film and video, music, performing arts, fashion design, new media, publishing, radio and television, industrial design, visual art, architecture and crafts. That means that entries may be in the form of an advert, design, video, film, song, performance, fashion item, book, radio show, television show, industrial design, painting, sculpture, print, photo, building, craft work or anything else.

Two runners up will receive R50 000 and R25 000 respectively.

SOUTH is the new creative ethos that has emerged from South Africa in the past few years. It’s the zeitgeist of contemporary creativity in the diverse, heritage-rich South Africa. SOUTH defines itself beyond ethnicity, religion, race or language, rather celebrating difference and uniqueness while accommodating the ongoing social challenges of the modern world. SOUTH is an inversion of hand-me-down Eurocentric creativity – turning the world map upside down to find that South is on top and South Africa the pinnacle of the world.

Even if you don’t win a prize, so finalists will still be included in the travelling exhibition – an exhibition that stands to be this century’s most radical visual treat the world has yet seen from Africa. Everyone wins!

What now?

Download the entry form at www.designindaba.com/south.

Send the entry form, pictures of the work, copy of ID and proof of payment to south@interactiveafrica.com.

Deadline extended to: 8 December 2008.

South background

Realising the need to fortify and celebrate the uniquely SOUTH-flavoured creativity that our country has been putting out, Design Indaba have partnered with Creative Circle and The Loerie Awards to form the Creative Alliance who have announced the SOUTH award and exhibition, sponsored by the SABC.

The SOUTH exhibition will celebrate the legends who have pioneered this upswing in a display of the top creative icons of the past few years. In turn, the SOUTH competition encourages everyone to invert their compasses and create something in the spirit of what it means to reclaim the world from the bottom up. The SOUTH competition finalists will complete the exhibition and three cash prizes will be awarded: R100 000, R50 000 and R25 000.

The SOUTH exhibition of legends and competition finalists will debut at the 2009 Design Indaba Expo. Then it’s time to take the message to the world – stand back Milan, London and New York, here comes SOUTH!

Onwards... upwards... southwards... viva!

MASSIVE CHANGE at Design Indaba 2009

What if we could do anything? What if the questions surrounding design turned out to be the big questions? What if life itself became a design project? What if the welfare of the entire human race became design’s practical objective? What if we succeeded?

These are just some of the questions why Bruce Mau’s groundbreaking book and exhibition, Massive Change, are nothing short of being a design cult movement. In 2006, Massive Change summed up the progressive ethos that has infiltrated 21st century creativity.

“Design has prevailed as one of the world’s most powerful forces. It perches us at the beginning of an unprecedented period of human possibility, where all economies and ecologies hold the capacity to merge as global, relational and interconnected,” announced Mau.

Don’t miss Bruce Mau at Design Indaba 2009.

Book before 12 December 2008 to make use of the Early Bird and Alumni discounts. Click here to register.