The women of South Africa’s design industry stand as beacons of creativity and vision, constantly redefining the landscape with their innovative ideas.

This Women’s Month, Decorex Joburg and 100% Design Africa celebrate the incredible contributions of women in design. “Our country’s rich cultural diversity should be reflected in its design industry, and championing women ensures this is accurately and fully represented,” comments Bielle Bellingham, Decorex Africa Executive Creative Director. “Often, women design with a focus on community and social impact, leading to projects that benefit society as a whole. By supporting their work, we foster a more inclusive and forward-thinking industry.”

The participants in these two shows, including engineers, architects, interior decorators, ceramicists, furniture designers, and textile artists, showcase remarkable expertise across diverse fields, emphasising the need to recognise their exceptional contributions.

Lexus ‘Making Luxury Personal’ Spaces

For the Lexus ‘Making Luxury Personal’ spaces, respected South African designers Anna Correia, Kgomotso Malope of MoTSO DeSIGNED and Sihan Wiid of Mink Interiors will create feature spaces informed by the latest Lexus car models, demonstrating how to capture the personality of luxury cars in interior design.

Plascon Colour Design Pods

Living Inspired Interiors, founded by Tanya Solomon, will create a room set inspired by Plascon palettes. The Plascon Colour Design Pods aim to push designers to explore and showcase the diverse and dynamic possibilities of colour using the Plascon Colour Forecast for 2024.

100% Design Africa

This year’s edition of 100% Design Africa will host an unparalleled display of product design, furniture, decor, lighting and art. Kalki Ceramics, co-founded by multi-disciplinary artist Nindya Bucktowar and her partner Nikhil Tricam, will be at the showcase. Kalki was the winner of the annual Nando’s Hot Young Designer Talent Search in 2022. 

Former Design Indaba Emerging Creatives and sisters Viveka and Rucita Vassen of Ananta Design Studio will also be showcasing their unique beaded lighting and decor pieces.

Local surface brand Infinity Surfaces will be displaying an exciting collaboration with four visionary local designers, including Mpho Vackier of multi-disciplinary furniture and product design company TheUrbanative, and Tanisha Neill of Cape Town-based furniture design studio N I S H. 

Design brand Coote and Wench, founded by Storm Coote and her husband Philip, will be returning to 100% Design Africa with its unique range of upcycled lighting, handmade furniture and home accessories.

Ashlee Lloyd of the internationally acclaimed lighting design studio Studio Lloyd will stage a designer room set at 100% Design Africa. The studio’s impressive catalogue of functional art pieces has been featured in British Vogue, VISI and Dezeen, among others.

100% Hospitality by Belgotex

Named earlier in 2024 as the ‘Women Shaping the Future of Sustainable Hotel Design’ by Condé Nast Traveller, Megan Hesse and Andrea Kleinloog of HesseKleinloog Studio and Anatomy Design will demonstrate their industry brilliance at 100% Hospitality by Belgotex, an exclusive exhibition showcasing the future of luxury hospitality design.

100% Design Africa Café

The 100% Design Africa Café, located in the centre of the 100% Design Africa hall on Level 2 of the convention centre, is designed by Wolkberg Casting Studio. Wolkberg, a proudly African industrial design studio, was co-founded by creative entrepreneur Ramielle de Jager – a regular Future Talks contributor – who has established a name for herself as a leading product innovator in the industry. 

Future Talks

Future Talks’ dynamic hosts for 2024 include creative multi-hyphenate and the co-founder of interior design studio MOEA Design, Cassandra Twala, creative director Jana Hamman, Andrea Kleinloog and spatial design educator and interior architect Audrey Nanjala. 

Decorex Joburg

Experience this active shift towards impact design for yourself and join the designers and creatives paving the way to the future at Decorex Joburg (1 to 4 August 2024 at the Sandton Convention Centre). | decorex.co.za

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NEXT24 will spotlight 24 exciting South African brands ready to make their mark on the global stage.

The annual NEXT trade exhibition returns for its 7th edition at Decorex Cape Town 2024, showcasing a curated selection of 24 craft and design brands from across South Africa, all chosen for their international market potential.

Coordinated by Fran Stewart from the Craft and Design Institute (CDI), the exhibition is aimed primarily at local and international buyers sourcing for the global market. All NEXT24 exhibitors are coached through the CDI’s export development programme, which has supported more than 70 businesses since inception. This programme has been running for several years and was initiated and run with the support of the Dutch Centre for the Promotion of Imports from Developing Countries (CBI). 

READ MORE: Decorex 2024: Designing for Impact and a Sustainable Future

Sustainability and ethical design are a major focus for this year’s cohort (and for Decorex as a whole) – from the sourcing of materials to the crafting processes themselves. “We’ve seen some stand-out work in our product sessions – fresh, contemporary and exciting – and we can’t wait for the public and buyers to get a glimpse of them at Decorex,” says Fran. 

NEXT24 will introduce 12 new participants and will welcome back 12 former exhibitors. Among the first-timers are former Design Indaba Emerging Creatives Leila Atelier and Ananta Design Studio, upcycle designers Plasticity, jewellery creators Ditakki and Zulu Mien, and Karoo Baba who works with merino wool.

GOING FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH

NEXT has seen its past participants go on to further success. Last year’s NEXT23 participant Bonolo Chepape of Lulasclan, a uniquely African textile brand, recently opened a store in The Watershed at the V&A Waterfront. “The CDI’s export training helped her to become ‘export-ready and to identify the sweet spots where I could possibly improve my product and marketing. It was such a valuable programme to be in,” says Bonolo.

Decorex Cape Town and Joburg

Experience this active shift towards impact design for yourself and join the designers and creatives paving the way to the future at Decorex Cape Town (6 to 9 June 2024 at the CTICC) and Decorex Joburg (1 to 4 August 2024 at the Sandton Convention Centre) | decorex.co.za.

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Discarded office furniture becomes bespoke art for the 2050 workplace.

UPCYCLE, a unique showcase which recently took place at Maker’s Landing at the V&A Waterfront, reimagines the future world of work through circular design. The exhibition was a collaboration between Sanlam, leading global property advisory company JLL, and its subsidiary interior design firm Tétris Design and Build – a world-class design, build and furniture business.

UPCYCLE saw a group of local makers and artists, alongside a local and international team from Tétris transform discarded office furniture into bespoke art installations.

Each piece of art was assigned a sustainability score, which guides incorporating sustainability aspects at every stage of design and build, covering eleven essential pillars. The artworks were evaluated according to factors such as the use of materials to minimise impact, design to foster improved air quality and water preservation, the inclusion of natural elements and light to promote well-being, as well as innovation.

Patrick Bongoy

The 2024 LOEWE FOUNDATION Craft Prize finalist is known for embracing an artistic methodology that revolves around the randomness and unique properties of the materials he works with. His process relies on actively listening to the materials as they guide and direct him, allowing for a fluid and organic creative approach.

For the exhibition, Bongoy used 80 unused desk bookshelves to create Carrefour – a four-stair structure that fosters a sense of connection, a place where people can converge and exchange ideas. His second piece for UPCYCLE, Sagan Palmier, was crafted from plastic dustbins, bookshelves and old meeting room tables. The towering lamp references the palm tree, which plays a significant role in African biodiversity production and agriculture.

Both installations invited the viewer to engage with the profound connection between art, environmental consciousness, and the power of recycling.

Ananta Design Studio

Sisters Viveka and Rucita Vassen from Ananta Design Studio created a plush ‘sea creature’ for UPCYCLE. The design duo used a discarded office bin at the centre of their playful lighting installation, which incorporated tactile elements like dried seaweed flowers, beaded urchins and fronds woven from old cassette tape by the talented makers at re.bag.re.use.

”When we thought of the future of the workplace, we thought of a playful, sensory, and interactive space. We wanted to create a plush floor seated area – something that stimulates creativity, challenges the current perception of the workplace and acts as a connector to nature,” says Rucita.

Wiid Design

Laurie Wiid van Heerden and his team at Wiid Design created an outdoor sculpture that adds to the environment by offering itself as a sustainable haven for birds.

Birdhouse – Version 2, crafted from recycled office bins and cork, symbolises coexistence and community. This contemporary interpretation of a functional birdhouse emphasises the importance of conserving wildlife and biodiversity, while also reducing the abundance of waste by up-cycling forgotten office furniture.

Hoven Design

Nisha and Justus Van der Hoven imagined the ‘future of work’ according to a job description set in the year 2050. At the centre of their multi-faceted display was the Cabinette – a tiny work cabin.

”The decentralised workforce of the future will rely heavily on a mobile toolkit, which is housed in a customised ‘cabinette’. This functions as a base station to perform tasks in the field. In the case of the Climate Restoration Engineer (a naturalist), the cabinette is an indigenous seed library, a herbarium for preserved plant specimens and a mobile apiary for the rehabilitation of insects,” says Nisha.

Cabinette was crafted entirely from old office furniture – old credenzas, dustbins and cubical screens were used to craft the mobile unit. The Climate Restoration Engineer’s work ‘jumpsuit’ and overgarment was made from the office cubical acoustic panel fabric and barrier mesh the designers found on the side of the road. ”Because we don’t know what the landscape will look like or what dangers we’d face in 2050, we decided to choose blaze orange as our primary colour – it’s non-threatening to wildlife but easily identifiable to the human eye,” says Nisha.

Tétris

Helen Wentzel and Tshepiso Lesufi from Tétris South Africa created Work at Play, a series of rotating, swinging seats.

”We found these corporate workstation legs, sketched out our ideas and came up with this swing,” says Tshepiso. ”We thought about our children who are our future workforce, and what they would want. We created this functional seating system that encourages creativity,” says Helen.

Another creation from the Tétris team was the Oxygen Farm Work Pod – made from reclaimed COVID work screens and plywood. ”This is a fully functional green pod, which is ideal for bringing nature into an interior working environment,” says Helen.

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Meet the designers turning trash into treasure by transforming old office furniture into works of art for UPCYCLE: Office Furniture Reimagined

This unique showcase taking place at Makers Landing at the V&A Waterfront on 19 and 20 April 2024 will highlight how design has the potential to shape a more conscious workspace.

Congolese artist Patrick Bongoy, sisters Viveka and Rucita Vassen of Studio Ananta, Nisha and Justus Van der Hoven of Hoven Design, and Laurie Wiid of Wiid Design have been tasked by global design and build company Tétris to create an artwork or installation using donated office furniture items in a direct response to the current office ecosystem that sees furniture often end up in landfills. Their four pieces will be showcased alongside Tétris’s furniture upcycling projects.

The team of designers representing Tétris is stacked with international talent. An acclaimed figure in architecture, interior design, space planning and workplace consulting, Adrian Davidson, Design Director Tétris EMEA, has more than 25 years’ experience in designing luxury eco-lodges, retail and premium workplaces. Before joining Tétris he completed Klein JAN, the award-winning restaurant in the Karoo in the Western Cape for Michelin star chef Jan Hendrik Van Der Westhuizen.

Amaury Watine, Creativity and Innovation Director Tétris EMEA, has an extensive background as a product and space designer with particular interest in innovation, trends and technological developments. His work for Scaleway, a French cloud computing and web company, reflects a forward-thinking approach to space design focused on the end user experience.

Flying the flag for South African design will be Helen Wentzel and Tshepiso Lesufi, both Senior Interior Designers from Tétris South Africa. Helen has more than 30 years’ design experience in the commercial, residential, and retail sectors, where she uses her love of design and attention to detail to create spaces that people find rewarding. From the Pepsico HQ in Johannesburg, to curating the selection of African art for the Roche Johannesburg informal collaboration spaces, Wentzel has an incredible knowledge of local design and materials.

Tshepiso has more than 18 years’ experience in retail and corporate design. With an interest and joy in local design and craft that infuses her work, Lesufi recently completed work for NBA in South Africa and Ethiopia where she worked with teams to repurpose and refurbish 65% of existing office furniture and fittings to create dynamic workspaces that playfully include sustainability best practice principles.  

Each of the designers and artists, chosen by the Tétris team based on their body of work and reputation in the industry, play a critical role in shaping what the future could be and imagining new possibilities for the workspace. The brief was simple: create an installation or art piece from disused office furniture, and then use this creative moment as the foundation to define what ‘the future of work’ may be – functional and practical, or abstract and fantastical.

Laurie Wiid is well-versed in the art of using unconventional materials in his work. As the founder and lead designer of Wiid Design, Laurie is an expert at finding the niche between high-end and sustainable product design. For UPCYCLE, he will be creating a sculptural birdhouse using almost 30 old office dustbins in combination with cork, steel and concrete. 

Studio Ananta is a Cape Town-based design studio committed to fostering a circular economy and creating sustainable, ethical and eco-conscious products. The studio’s fantastical beaded creations, characterised by colour and bold patterns, are designed by the duo and crafted in collaboration with skilled artisan communities, such as the beaders at Monkeybiz.

“We are thrilled to be participating in Tétris’s UPCYCLE exhibition which allows us the opportunity to explore how creativity, colour and craft can be used to reimagine the future of workspaces,“ commented Viveka and Ructia.

Acclaimed Congolese artist Patrick Bongoy is a fierce advocate for using art to give new life to discarded materials. Using materials such as disused rubber, the artist creates new life and symbolism with his artworks, making him the perfect contributor to the UPCYCLE project.

‘The concept of the workplace has undergone significant changes over the past few decades, and the future promises to bring more transformation,’ says Patrick, whose project will involve developing an artwork that helps workers lower their stress and anxiety and boost their performance.

Lastly, Nisha and Justus Van der Hoven’s unconventional and multidisciplinary architecture, interior design, film and exhibition studio Hoven will bring its experimental approach to the UPCYCLE exhibition. By combining their overlapping interests, the duo has shaped a unique process in their approach to projects and imagining new possibilities within an African context – particularly with regards to workspaces. The Van der Hovens have previously been involved in the architectural and interior design of workspaces such as Workshop17’s The Bank, Firestation, Kloof Street and Tabakhuis buildings, where they rethought the future of the physical, digital and experiential workspace and developed new space typologies designed for flexibility, variety and choice.

In terms if of the event, there will be a student-focused day on 19 April and a walkabout with the artists and designers on Saturday 20 April at 11h00, which will be led by Heath Nash of Circular Squared. A designer and serial social entrepreneur, he has been ardently advancing the notion of waste as value since 2004. The Head of Sustainable Design at Circular Squared, a non-profit that champions circular economic thinking, and the founder of Our Workshop, a shared upcycling and design studio in Langa, Heath is committed to social engagement and circular design in all his work.

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This pioneering exhibition taking place from 19 to 20 April 2024 showcases how human creativity can tackle the challenge of tomorrow’s working world.

Upcycle is an innovative initiative showcasing how design can champion circularity and contribute to creating more sustainable workspaces. This project will take the form of an exhibition in Cape Town, presented by JLL, a leading global property development company, and its subsidiary Tétris Design and Build, an interior design firm. The exhibition aims to raise awareness around environmental challenges and inspire others to take action.

“We see a brighter way forward for our clients, our people, our planet, and our communities… we’re unveiling opportunities that create a brighter future for all,” JLL states.

Tétris, which creates commercial environments that are inspirational and sustainable, is deeply invested in defining what tomorrow’s workspaces will look like in our ever-changing society. JLL and Tétris have identified that we need to contend with how the agile reconfiguration of the workspace in the post-Covid world has led to a mounting tide of discarded office equipment and furniture that either languishes in storage, ends up on an over-supplied second-hand market, or worse – in landfill. In Tétris’s view, designers and artists play a critical role in imagining new possibilities that help shape what the future could be, which is why the company has invited a collective of leading creative minds to spotlight the issue and to prompt its own organisation and the broader industry to reconsider their role.

With Upcycle, the aim is to put bigger issues of sustainability and regenerative design under the spotlight in a creative way. A select group of local designers and artists, including members of Tétris’s own local and international teams, has been tasked with breathing new life into discarded office equipment and furniture pieces. With these thought-provoking pieces that will ignite conversation, Upcycle is set to be an intriguing affair.

The select group of local designers and artists include:

• Congolese artist Patrick Bongoy
• Sisters Viveka and Rucita Vassen of Ananta Design Studio
• Nisha and Justus van der Hoven of Hoven Design
• Laurie Wiid of Wiid Design
• Amaury Watine, who is the Creativity and Innovation Director Tétris EMEA
• Adrian Davidson, Design Director Tétris EMEA, as well as two Senior Interior Designers from Tétris South Africa, Helen Wentzel and Tshepiso Lesufi.

The exhibition will be open to the public at Makers Landing at V&A Waterfront from 19 to 20 April 2024. On Friday 19 April, design students will be welcomed for a special student-focused day, and on Saturday 20 April there will be a free curated walkabout with the artists and designers at 11h00. 

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Sister-owned design studio Ananta focuses on creativity and upliftment, reimagining traditional techniques to make products that put the fun back in functional.

Ananta is a design studio founded by Cape Town-based sisters Viveka and Rucita Vassen. The name originates from the Sanskrit word for “endless” or “infinite”. With a mission to uplift communities through creativity and promote economic empowerment, Ananta works in close collaboration with craft communities.

Viveka’s background in fashion design and Rucita’s expertise in graphic design sparked their mutual passion for creativity, crafts and collaboration, leading to the establishment of the design studio during the Covid lockdown in 2020. Their innovative approach to traditional techniques has earned them recognition as part of the Design Indaba Emerging Creatives 2023 cohort. Ananta’s designs exude a delightful twist, and are characterised by vibrant colours, captivating patterns, and an atmosphere of joy, celebration and community. The sisters are committed to fostering a circular economy, and aim to create sustainable, ethical and eco-conscious products.

* Being a two-women show and a new business means there is more juggling in a day than anything else, making each day different. We’ve constantly got our hands on several things, including admin, meeting our crafters and makers, preparing orders, and quality control. One thing is for sure: the day always involves moments of being inspired and excited about new product ideas and possibilities.

* Creating well-designed spaces and pieces is about function for us. We also believe in creating positive energy in spaces through design. We follow the principles of Vastu Shastra – an ancient Vedic science of architecture and placement in relation to nature and the five elements to create a harmonious and peaceful living environment. It is a complex science based on ancient spatial geometry, calculations and alignment with nature to maximise the flow of good energy. It’s the ultimate form of holistic design.

* We follow resources such as Design Milk and Sight Unseen for industry updates, news and trends.

* India is our favourite destination for design inspiration. The colours, culture, vibrancy and authenticity are infectious. It makes you feel alive, and inspired to create beautiful and meaningful things. It’s also our ancestral land, and it ignited our love of crafts, artisan-made pieces and everything embellished! In India, the exploration of traditional crafts is incredible. From street vendors and chain stores to high-end brands, everyone celebrates and keeps reinventing hand-made crafts while supporting artisan communities. This has been a huge inspiration, and a driving force for us.

* We love our Maata Pita table lamps. They have a special meaning. “Maata Pita” refers to “mother and father” in Hindi, the male and female energy that creates life, and the endless love that manifests from there. The inspiration for the pattern was to create a radial, expanding love – like that of our parents’, who always light and lead the way. The design process was also interesting and layered. We both worked on the pattern, refining the forms and proportions, which resulted in a beautifully complete design, reinforcing the idea of family love and synchronicity.

* Colour and bold statement pieces are the quickest way to update an interior. We’re inspired by and love the Haas Brothers (Nikolai and Simon Haas). We first saw their work at the Guild Design Fair in 2014 and were instantly captivated. Their playful, quirky, imaginative pieces are your wildest dreams come to life. At the time of the fair, we were working in fashion and graphic design, and said to each other, “Imagine we could design pieces like these” – not realising a seed had been planted. Six years later, we met with Monkeybiz, and learnt that the organisation worked with the Haas Brothers to create their life-sized beaded Afreaks. It was a full-circle moment – realising that the designers who had inspired us years before had worked with the same artisans with whom we would build a relationship.

* Our garden is our favourite space. It’s our sanctuary. We love being surrounded by nature and being able to enjoy our meals under the sun. It’s a space filled with happy memories of pool parties and picnics with friends and family.

* If money were no object, we’d treat ourselves to Frances Goodman’s nail art sculptures. They are insanely cool!

* Our philosophy is “design to uplift humanity”. We believe in harnessing our skills to create an impact business, economically empowering the craft communities we work with. It’s important for us to celebrate our makers and preserve their traditional crafts. Being able to support and empower other artisans brings so much more purpose and joy to what we do, and makes the end product even more beautiful.

* We are currently working on furniture pieces and an Airbnb project, which we are really excited about. We will also be launching a range of woven handbags soon.

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