Africa is Now - Showcase by Design Indaba - EXPO 2014

With Cape Town receiving the title of the World Design Capital for 2014, the annual Design Indaba has shown exactly why we are on a whole other level in the world of design. Story by Leandri De Kock.

As usual, the Design Indaba expo, held at the CTICC in February, had all the things you would expect from the biggest design expo in the southern hemisphere – 
handmade items, home ware, architecture, furniture, jewellery and fashion, with everything manufactured locally. 

What makes DI different to other design expo’s is the quality of the exhibitors, their detail and the depth in their displays, and for the first time this year, the expo features designers from all over the continent, expanding the global impact our local designs currently make. DI features over 450 exhibitors all carefully chosen to represent South Africa, and specifically Cape Town for the World Design Capital title.. but it’s the general focus Design Indaba and their exhibitors have that makes this expo stand out...


Every item you see, from furniture to fashion, focuses on architecture, the use of textiles, sustainability, and making everything as environmentally friendly as possible.

At the moment, we live in a society where we are so used to everything being described as “green” or “eco-friendly”, and we can easily get tired of the redundancy, but what Design Indaba has done is make these old ideas refreshing and sustainable in an African context. The exhibitors use different ideas of modernity and bring it into a traditional African sense without making it the type of thing you see at every tourist curio shop.

"Design Indaba delivers every year, showing just how amazing and advanced South African designs can be."

The feature exhibit this year is the “Africa is Now” showcase, describing Africa as resourceful, sharp, transformed, tradition reinvented and urban, each with their own designs on how Africa is exactly that. 
The expo also has different platforms for young creatives, such as the “Emerging Creatives” project which is sponsored by the Department of Arts and Culture, who gives designers of the next generation the opportunity to get on the platform next to the established designers at Design Indaba.

The elaborate fashion shows, produced by the Cape Town Fashion Council, brings 20 shows to the expo, showcasing local fashion and couture by South Africa’s leading designers. Putting a “tribal glamour” twist on the fashion, it also focuses on the “green” idea and using sustainable and recyclable materials in their designs.

It can’t be said that the expo showcases everyday designs, or builds on ideas you’ve seen before. Design Indaba delivers every year, showing just how amazing and advanced South African designs can be. But it goes without saying, that with the title of World Design Capital for 2014 in Cape Town, Design Indaba obviously had to make it their best and most innovative year so far...and they most certainly did that!
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WDC2014 GUILD International Design Fair - Introducing Africa

Introducing Africa’s Global Design festival, GUILD, a wave of Cape Town’s World Design Capital year (WDC 2014). The inaugural event unifies top leaders, artists, designers and speakers from national and international galleries. This event runs from Friday 28 February 2014 and will end on Sunday 9 March 2014. Story by Maxine Williams

Design Network Africa - Designer Joseph Nii Noi Douwuona

 
 
This truly inspiring event will feature speakers, exhibitionists and attendees from over 17 different countries across Africa, United States of America, South America, Britain and Europe.
 

Nacho Carbonell - working in Eindhoven, The Netherlands

‘I like to see objects as living organisms, imagining them coming alive and being able to surprise you 
with their behaviour. I want to create objects with my hands, then I can give them my personality. 
I turn them into communicative objects that can arouse one’s sensations and imagination. in short, 
what I want to create are objects with a fictional or fantasy element, that allow you to escape everyday life.‘
- nacho carbonell 

Exhibitors at the WDC2014 GUILD International Design Fair line-up.

    •    Nacho Carbonell (Holland): Featured Designer For Guild 2014
    •    Origins Centre (South Africa)
    •    Southern Guild (South Africa)
    •    Design Network Africa (Africa)
    •    R 20th Century (New York)
    •    Rossana Orlandi (Italy)
    •    V&A Museum and the British Council (UK)
    •    Coletivo Amor de Madre (Brazil)
    •    Agents of the 3D Revolution (Global) 

Senegalese designer Babacar M'Bodj Niang-
Design Network Africa

GUILD Design Fair by joining a guided tour with fair director Trevyn McGowan.

  

Co-founder Trevyn McGowan - 

"More than just a fair for beautiful objects, GUILD represents the coming together of dedicated, focused curators, designers and institutions who are striving to preserve and provoke unique, groundbreaking design and have been advertising South Africa’s creative and unique Arts and Culture for numerous years through the agency Source & Platform Southern Guild."

Don't miss David Wiseman's exquisitely crafted, nature-inspired pieces up close, courtesy of R & Company. On at The Lookout, Granger Bay, V & A Waterfront, open 11am to 8pm daily, and from 11am to 4pm on Sunday 9 March, closing day.Tickets R75. www.guilddesignfair.com

Original handmade accessories by Madame

The smooth, flowing beauty in these handcrafted jewellery items can only attract the finer delights in one's eye.  Brightening up our screens all the way from a quaint little town in Sofia, Bulgaria. Madame reveals an exquisite combination of grace and harmony in her work.

"All our creations are made with natural materials, leather and semi-precious stone.  They please the eye with their natural beauty and stimulate the body to infuse positive energy."

 

 

Via Madame - "These creations are a compliment to a woman's beautiful combination of style and fashion."

 

"Later we realized the importance that the accessories had in our outfits, of just how the bracelet or necklace might give each dress completeness and originality.  So we decided to create fine handmade accessories and offer you our idea's. To bring a little ray of joy in your everyday life!"

 Please visit Madame Facebook for more of her amazing work!