Cape Town-based designer and illustrator Carla Latsky aka Little Latsky chats to VISI about how she loves to portray the fact that life isn’t perfect through her bright and quirky illustrations and gifs.

Tell us a bit about yourself 

I grew up in the Northern ‘burbs of Cape Town and studied Graphic Design at Ruth Prowse School of Art. After graduating, I found homes in the offices of a fashion magazine, a non-profit art gallery and two small design agencies. Late in 2020, I started working independently as Little Latsky and I’m loving working from my home studio in Woodstock. Latsky is my surname, it’s Polish (I’m not) but most of my friends, teachers & colleagues have used it as a nickname from day 1, and I’ve always liked that.

Describe your work style 

I wrote ‘I like things bright and cheeky with a bubblegum pink centre’ in my Instagram bio in an attempt to sum it up. The drawings I do for myself look a lot like the stickers I used to collect in primary school… brightly coloured characters that want nothing more than to be pinned to your shirt or used to decorate your space case. Right now I like mixing simple vector drawings with iridescent gradients and glitter textures. It’s all a bit 90s (but in a good way?) 

What inspires your work? 

I really enjoy creating designs that help small business owners tell their stories, whether that be in the form of a fresh brand identity, illustration, animated gifs or packaging. A new project usually kicks off with a meeting over coffee because chatting to clients about the ‘why’ of their businesses inspires me. Having a people-centred approach has always been an important aspect of my work; it means that the creative process is a collaboration between the client and myself, and we’re equally excited to share ideas, reach milestones and connect with the target audience. On a personal level, I like to poke fun at feelings of anxiety, perfectionism and imposter syndrome, in the hopes of making people laugh and, more importantly, remember that life isn’t perfect & that’s okay! 

What do you enjoy in a brief? 

Any brand that isn’t afraid to have fun with how they market themselves is a blessing to work on. Clever copywriters and entrepreneurs with passion are my people. 

Do you have any illustrators in SA you admire? 

There’s a crazy number of South African illustrators/ artists whose posts get rows of the flame emoji from me. The few mentioned below are those that came to mind at this moment:

• Freaky & fresh illustrations by Shaun Hill
• Experimental make-up and paper art by Lavanya Wiles
• Murals by Bushy Wopp
• Movie posters by Keith Vlahakis
• Everything Nardstar touches
• Also everything Pola Maneli touches
• Creatures in Copic marker by Nanna Venter
• Imaginative paintings by Amber Alcock 

What does a regular day look like for you? 

My to-do list lives in Asana, so once I’ve settled at my desk with coffee (and studio pooch Kimchi on my lap), I start working on whatever’s highlighted in the calendar. I listen to comedy and true-crime podcasts most days and walk to the dog park after 5. It’s a cute routine that I’ve only had for around 3 months, but they’ve been 3 very happy ones. Driving from Woodstock to town (something I used to do every day) now feels like an adventure! 

What are your plans for the next few years? 

I dream of creating art in public spaces and telling stories through a unique blend of colour, bold graphics and humour. Recently my illustrations have focussed largely on destigmatizing mental illness. I am passionate about this cause, as well as fighting for gender equality and the safety of women and children in South Africa. And if everything works out, I’ll be marrying my bestie Casper and travelling to Japan next year. 

Find out more about Little Latsky through their website or on Instagram.

Looking for more on art or design? Take a look at the work of local illustrator Kobie.

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Utah-based multidisciplinary artist Stephanie K. Clark (previously featured here) describes the creation of her dreamy pieces as painting with thread.

Contrary to traditional painting, Stephanie uses strands of multicoloured thread to plot landscapes and houses in such a way that from a distance they look like they are made up of brushstrokes.

Much like painting, she creates layers of colour and texture with strands of string. Her work varies in size from large-scale to minuscule, with the larger pieces taking up to 20 hours to complete.

See more of her work on her Instagram.

(h/t) thisiscolossal.com

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Tulsha Booysen’s CanBeam light shines in a major design installation in Nando’s Michigan Avenue in Chicago.

In response to the brief for the Nando’s Hot Young Designer Talent Search in 2015, then schoolgirl Tulsha designed the CanBeam light: an upcycled interpretation of traditional African beadwork using colourful cooldrink cans. Now, 6 800 cans form part of the striking installation in a US branch of the beloved peri-peri chicken chain.

In addition to travelling to Chicago for the installation of the mega-version of the CanBeam light, 2017 also saw Tulsha collaborate with another Nando’s Hot Young Designer finalist, Candice Lawrence, on a design installation at the Basha Uhuru Freedom Festival at Constitution Hill.

As a Nando’s Hot Young Designer Talent Search finalist, Tulsha was mentored by Liani Douglas, as well as interior designer Tracy Lee Lynch and lighting designer Conrad Van der Westhuizen, to take her sketch and develop a prototype of the CanBeam.

“[Before] I thought design was about products,” says Tulsha, “but after meeting and collaborating with strong, creative and beautiful minds, such as Aria Design agency in Chicago, with whom I collaborated to create the large-scale CanBeam; Liani Douglas, who mentored me during and after Nando’s Hot Young Designer Competition; and Tracy Lee Lynch, who opened the design door and has helped me grow immensely as a designer, I have come to learn that design is about creating a life that is better for everyone. It has been a truly life-changing journey.”

Follow Tulsha on Instagram.

The CanBeam can be seen at Nando’s Michigan Avenue in Chicago and, locally, at Nando’s Sea Point and Nando’s Tokai.

The post Nando’s Hot Young Designer’s Light Goes Global appeared first on Visi.

To launch adicolor in South Africa, adidas Originals commissioned a group of local creatives to show how they celebrate colour in their everyday lives and start a contagious online colour movement.

The cast includes multimedia visual artist, Vogue contributor and mega-influencer Trevor Stuurman and actress Amanda du-Pont, photographed by Trevor and Obakeng Molepe, and a photographic series conceptualised, directed and photographed by documentary and fashion photographer Dune Tilley.

The collection’s primary colours – Bluebird, Fairway Green, Scarlett Red and Sun Yellow – were first seen in 1983, when all-white adicolor shoes were presented alongside a set of felt-tip pens. They reappeared in 2006 for the Color Series, an adidas collaboration with some of the world’s best-known and most highly regarded creatives who created unique pieces around a specific colour.

The SS18 offering plays with these iconic shades to create tonal ensembles in the most influential adidas silhouettes of past decades. These classic styles have been reimagined for today through the use of innovative fabrics and refined fits and, according to the brand, move beyond fixed gender binaries.

To celebrate the creative launch and in an aim to flood Instagram with adidas Originals’ four primary colourways, fans are encouraged to Wear, Snap, Share their adicolor purchase until 1 February. By tagging @adidasza and using the hashtag #adicolor, customers stand the chance of winning R10 000 worth of adicolor product.

Available at adidas Originals stores, Sportscene and online, browse and shop the collection here.

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Damien Grivas says he will do just about anything (legal) for cash. We caught up with this leading creative, who is known for his ability to craft any installation his clients come up with.

Start at the beginning…

I left home to start my career as an artist after studying graphic design, sculpture and painting, but I wasn’t making much money. A friend asked me to help him do paint finishes for R80 a day, which I did for about four years. During that time I started playing with silicone and rubber, and developed a home decor range that I sold at flea markets.

What was your big break?

About 15 years ago, Maira Koutsoudakis saw my work and asked me to supply her company Life. She then asked if I could make a range of items (sculptures, pod lights and so on) for North Island, a resort in the Seychelles. Naturally I said yes to it all, not knowing a thing!

Name three career highlights.

A gold leaf wall at the concept shop Collective by Charles Greig, a dowel-stick relief eye I did for Herman Smit Optometrists, and my work for the David Higgs restaurant Marble.

Tell us about the macramé screen you made for Marble.

I was briefed to create a simple black background in front of which a theatrical Harrods-inspired fruit and food display could be shown off. I designed a screen of knotted black chord – a job that took our team of three 12 days to complete.

And the relief behind the bar?

It is an abstract graphic of cows in grass. Since solid bronze would have been pricey, I had to think outside the box. Eight Supawood panels were cut with a CNC router. I then gave them a black enamel base coat and added five layers of glaze to build up the bronze effect.

Read more about Marble and see a full gallery of the space here.

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Adrian & Gidi is an Amsterdam-based photography and design duo, made up of Adrian Woods and Gidi van Maarseveen.

They met at The Royal Academy of Arts in the Hague, where they graduated in 2010, and began working together in 2012.

Their tactile and creative approach sees them working with mediums ranging from paper and wood to styrofoam and plexiglass, all captured through photography.

These bold and brightly coloured creations evoke a strong sense of playfulness and fun, and the team have had some high profile clients, including Clinique, Oreo, Vogue Italia, Fanta, Converse, Adobe, Ray-Ban, Fisher-Price and Footlocker.

See more of their work at adrian-gidi.com.

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What makes Dutch Design Week so unique is its location: Eindhoven. A small city with farming origins, a history of being home to the Phillips factory, and now regarded by Forbes magazine as the most inventive place in the world due to the high density of technology startups, IP registrations and students.

Between the pioneering industrial design of Eindhoven’s University of Technology, and the renowned avant-garde milieu of the Design Academy, a design festival that explores the sci-fi-like qualities of our present and future emerges. Or, in short: less chairs, more virtual reality.

The impact of game-changing technologies on how we live was explored in numerous high profile exhibitions this year. Big data, the internet of things, hyperreality, sentient machines, and the disappearance of privacy were key themes in exhibitions such as the Age of Wonderland that hosted six fellows from around the world to explore big data in relation to indigenous knowledge; Manifestations that asked if we’re designing the future or if it’s designing us (are we in The Matrix?), and In No Particular Order, showing the country’s emerging designers. These and thematic exhibitions on health and education by the Stimuleringsfonds – the Netherlands’ creative funding agency – not only challenged society’s blind adoption of technology, but also presented radical alternative applications. For instance, Ali Eslami explored how instead of virtual reality as escapist fantasy, using it to foster more empathy and understanding of terrorism-related death tolls.

There was also a mood of apocalypse, resourcefulness and restraint, with social issues taking centre stage in the Making of Your World exhibition, curated by Bas van Abel – founder of the Fairphone, which is a smartphone that is open-source, modular, recyclable and guarantees ethical sourcing of materials. Iman Abdurrahman explored how when disaster strikes, all our fancy technology may well be useless, but the humble radio will play on. At Modebelofte, top fashion students showed how we might adapt our clothes to become resources for shelter, safety and energy in an apocalyptic world.

Clothes, but especially textiles, came up for a complete rethinking and reshaping. No longer simply textured, fabrics were sculptural and architectural, often with extra features like sound, light or pollution absorption. The likes of Milou Voorwinden, Emma Wessel and Robin Maas explored the potential of weaving optical fibres, wires, yarn and any type of thread they could lay their hands on. Bart Hess opened his studio, presenting a treasure trove of artificial hides, with the flesh coloured Royal Latex Bed really getting under your skin, so to speak.

Milou Voorwinden

Emma Wessel

Bart Hess

Robin Maas

Continuing from their exhibitions at Milan Design Week earlier this year, collectives like Dutch Invertuals and Envisions showed how we might also find some spontaneity, whimsy and craft in this era of high-tech. The style is exemplified by Bastiaan de Nennie who toys with making the virtual subconscious physical. This post-Memphis digital candy aesthetic was also picked up by Pop Core, and MU’s For Play exhibition that went above and beyond to delightfully show that designing sex is not about dildos and vibrators.

Bastiaan de Nennie

When there is speed and technology, there is also always the countermovement. Atelier NL took their exploration of heirloom clay sourced from specific locations in the Netherlands to the next level, serving vegetables grown in the same soil as the plate was made from. Pressing pause was Maarten Baas with his Making Time exhibition that presented a retrospective of his work (possibly the most chairs in any of the exhibitions during DDW), and his on-going fascination with the concept of time. He presented 12 boxes in a clock-like circle, inside of which real actors completed mundane everyday tasks to show that real time is not measured in minutes or seconds. A collection of other time-measuring devices were also on display.

Atelier NL

Maarten Bass

Of course, there were also those domestic objects that, with a profoundly reinvented form, give a pure aha moment. Like Christian Heikoop’s Glissade furniture range that shows the truly flatpack is not even solid, but fabric like a tent. Pinkie Patisserie’s glass Cake Tower, Paul Ketz’s storage Nest and Zeljka Zrnic’s One Day Stand would be welcome in VISI’s home any day.

Christian Heikoop

Paul Ketz

Zeljka Zrnic

The post Dutch Design Week 2016: The Age Of The Virtual appeared first on Visi.

London architects Jonas Prišmontas and Tomaso Boano have designed Minima Moralia, a modular, customisable pop-up space.

The small, cellular construction is aimed at creatives such as painters, designers, musicians, architects and sculptors looking for an interactive working studio space.

The concept is aimed at both communal and solo use with the idea that small communities of pop-up studios will form in both public and private areas. This will bring together like-minded individuals to share a creative space in the city, where rent is expensive and places are densely populated.

The shell of the Minima Moralia is constructed from modular steel with windows as walls and a folding canopy for an indoor-outdoor effect. There is also the opportunity to customise the space with shelves, desks and lights.

For more information, visit minimamoralia.co.uk.

(h/t) designboom.com

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Sweden-based Snask, speaking at Design Indaba 2016, are known for their expertise in branding and identity creation, but they’re way more than just a creative agency. They’re authors, musicians, brewers, festival organisers… and bike designers.

Their clients include H&M, Samsung, Microsoft, Universal Music Group and Electrolux. Their aim? “We strive to challenge the industry by doing things differently. We worship unconventional ideas, charming smiles and real emotions. We see the old conservative world as extremely tedious and as our biggest enemy.”

Browse the gallery above to view some of our favourite Snask creations.

View more work at snask.com.

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Electricity poles are being pulled down as underground cables take over. That means there are lots of glass and porcelain electrical insulators lying around, just waiting for a new function.

Keep an eye out for discarded electrical insulators on the side of the road or pop in at your local electricity depot to collect some – they make great suspension lights, especially with a vintage Edison light bulb hung low and bare.

Get a glass merchant to drill a hole in the head of the insulator, making sure the hole is big enough to thread an electrical cable through it, then fit a light bulb socket on the one end and an electrical plug on the other. Screw in a light bulb – and switch it on!

We bought red fabric-covered cable cord for R39 per metre and a vintage Edison light bulb for R150 from Hoi P’loy. Ideal Glass & Mirror (011 787 8993) helped out by drilling the hole.

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