WORDS Jo Buitendach PHOTOS Drien Dirand/Dior; Elizabeth Carababas/Southern Guild; Hayden Phipps/Southern Guild; Thakatha Repro (Pillar IV)

Hylton Nel

Hylton Nel’s name has, without a doubt, been on every fashionista and art aficionado’s lips recently. Born in 1941, Hylton lives and works on the outskirts of Calitzdorp in the Klein Karoo. While he has long been a respected artist, it’s his most recent collaboration that has resulted in a new level of fame and “collectability”: six massive versions of the ceramicist’s iconic cats transformed the runway at the Dior Men Summer 2025 show in Paris last year. “Hylton Nel’s giant cats on the catwalk are based on ones from my collection and Hylton’s,” says Kim Jones, artistic director at Dior Men, of the collaboration. “These are the cats that spoke to me the most… they meowed to me!” Hylton is also well known for his quirky yet beautiful plates, bowls and vases. hyltonnel.co.za | stevenson.info

Zizipho Poswa

Mthatha-born, Cape Town-based Zizipho Poswa is best known for large-scale ceramic and bronze sculptures that are a bold declaration of African womanhood. Her practice reflects a personal journey that pays homage to her Xhosa culture and spiritual traditions. Her work can be found in the collections of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and the Art Institute of Chicago, and she has had solo shows in both New York and Los Angeles. Zizipho’s Lobi (2024) was on display at the public-art initiative Frieze Sculpture in London last year. The colossal ceramic and bronze sculpture is more than 2.5m tall, and is a reproduction of the ornate hairpin worn by the Lobi people of southwestern Burkina Faso. The clay body was made during a residency in California, where Zizipho had access to immense kilns that enabled her to scale up her work. southernguild.com | imisoceramics.co.za

Andile Dyalvane

Born in 1978 in Ngobozana, a small village in the Eastern Cape, Andile Dyalvane is indisputably one of South Africa’s leading ceramic artists. Guided by a deep spiritual connection to his Xhosa ancestors, he sees his large-scale ceramics as a metaphorical vessel through which to honour his traditions and share his journey of healing. In 2005, Andile co-founded Imiso Ceramics with Zizipho Poswa; their handmade collections of tableware and vessels have since garnered an international following. Andile latest solo show, “OoNomathotholo: Ancestral Whispers”, features a new body of work, and is his fourth exhibition with the Friedman Benda gallery in New York. southernguild.com | imisoceramics.co.za

Madoda Fani

Raised in Gugulethu township in Cape Town, Madoda Fani is known for his hand-coiled, burnished, smoke-fired pieces – a contemporary evolution of traditional Nguni ceramics. Madoda was a finalist in Loewe Foundation Craft Prize in 2022, and his work is part of the collections of the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the Loewe Foundation. He has also participated in residency programmes in Argentina, France, Austria and Mexico. In August last year he took part in the 2nd Indian Ocean Craft Triennial in Western Australia, where he’s been the artist-in-residence at Denmark Arts. southernguild.com

Frances Goodman

Johannesburg-based artist Frances Goodman’s work includes installations, photography, sculptures and ceramics. She focuses primarily on women and on contemporary notions of beauty and desire, and is interested in female identity as well as the anxieties that manifest as a result of media and societal expectations. Danish gallery Specta presented two of Frances’s latest ceramic works at last year’s Frieze Sculpture in London’s Regent’s Park. Frances’s “Pillars” – Pillar IV (MF) and Pillar V (Come Undone) – are meticulously assembled and stacked ceramic structures of pills and tablets, grouped by shape, colour and size to form Jenga-like towers. According to Frances, they can “kill your pain, help you get high, calm you down, or stabilise your mind”… francesgoodman.com | frieze.com | specta.dk

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Three new solo shows at Southern Guild in Cape Town explore diverse cultural narratives through contemporary ceramic and sculptural art.

Running concurrently until 22 August, 2024, Southern Guild‘s new solo exhibitions offer a distinct yet complementary perspective, showcasing the rich tapestry of contemporary sculptural art.

Adam Birch’s solo show, Like Something Almost Being Said, features hand-sculpted timbre works that reflect a deep connection to the natural world. The ceramic pieces in Madoda Fani’s Madoda: Let Us Now Praise Famous Men challenge and reframe perceptions of Black masculinity in South Africa. King Houndekpinkou’s vibrant ceramics, showcased in Six Prayers, blend West African and Japanese influences, creating a unique dialogue between tradition and modernity.

Adam Birch: Like Something Almost Being Said

After more than two decades of working as an arborist, Adam Birch’s practice roots itself in an intimate understanding of the language of trees.

The exhibition’s title has been drawn from Philip Larkin’s 1967 poem, ‘The Trees’. The English poet’s composition honours the tree as an allegorical vessel for the cycles of decay and rebirth. Through this lens, Adam’s works become carriers for something budding and full of promise; arising from what was once lifeless, now infused with new vitality in their reimagined, transformed forms. Each of Adam’s artworks has been made through the singular use of a felled tree.

Like Something Almost Being Said features forked seating and large-scale functional forms emerging from a conversation between object and maker. The forks are a significant and recurring shape within Adam’s sculptural vocabulary. These split forms appear at a crucial point in the tree’s structure. Adapted to withstand a lot of pressure and support the weight of the large top branches, the fork contains the hardest wood and the most unpredictable grain. While other arborists ordinarily discard this part of the tree’s form, Adam is captivated by it. Spontaneously led by the tree’s grain, the shape is extracted, and meticulously refined to accommodate one – or multiple–seated bodies.

Adam relinquishes predetermined form, allowing each timber piece to guide him. “It’s about exploring the different shapes the wood can yield – pushing the boundary of what the material can hold,” he shares. “It’s a process of refinement rather than making.”

Adam’s artworks present a paradox: these forms appear simple, straightforward, singular in their material and immediately understood. Yet they’re of a metaphysical quality; they have been changed in essence into something of utility and function, imbued with a reinvigorated purpose that diverges from the essential quest of a tree: to simply be.

Madoda Fani: Madoda: Let Us Now Praise Famous Men

Inheriting its title from the artist’s given name (meaning ‘men’) and the acclaimed work of non-fiction by writer James Agee and photographer Walker Evans, this exhibition is a mapping of urban Black masculinities that challenges hetero-normative narratives of the township Black man in South Africa. Re-imagining and re-imaging ubiquitous domestic objects in clay, Madoda Fani‘s work deconstructs reductive and harmful cliches of Black masculinities, re-fashioning them with masterful skill and attention to craft.

Challenging this fixity, Madoda: Let Us Now Praise Famous Men is a gesture of gratitude for and recognition of the Black men who shaped Madoda. The artist puts this care into his painstakingly and delicately detailed work. Each carved line and indentation is an imprint of love.

Madoda uses the primus stove as a central allegorical object to speak about Black manhood and vulnerability. Known for their durability and efficiency, these quickly become commonplace household items in lower-income communities, solving issues of both space and power. Madoda reconstitutes the object – softer and more fragile in clay than it is in its traditional steel, protected by spikes and scales, its defensive coat of armour.

In Gugulethu, young men and boys gather around these synthetic hearths, forming bonds of community that defy the historical intents of the township space. This body of work recognises how manufactured tropes about the Black man and the township are mobilised through violent stereotyping and the overdetermination of Black identity.

King Houndekpinkou: Six Prayers 

King Houndekpinkou presents Six Prayers as multi-textural vessels, showcasing the coexisting alchemy of science, pop culture, philosophy, mysticism, and myth.

Known for his distinctive vocabulary of shape, texture and colour, King’s work explores unexpected hybridities, the product of a diasporic worldview that resists cultural borders. He has developed an explorative practice that blends tradition and ancient spirituality with modern techniques, drawing heavily from Japanese and West African culture. 

Produced over eight weeks while participating in the GUILD Residency in Cape Town, Six Prayers fuses several traditions with future possibilities to offer new myths to new gods, complete with their ritualistic objects. Having learned the meditative art of wheel-thrown ceramics under master potter Toshiaki Shibuta in Bizen – one of the six ancient kilns of Japan known as the Roku Koyō – he infuses a deep spiritual intent into his process, creating vessel forms that he then stacks and clusters into sculptural totems.

King’s use of texture is masterful and unexpected. “What really gives life to a piece is its texture. The texture makes the colour come alive. I want to make pieces that look like they’re living, moving, and breathing.” Clay forms are curved into smooth precision, only to be disrupted by shocks of colour, sharp stalks, and crackling glazes. Teasing at biomimicry, spikes borrow their form from the natural world. Like thorns, they protect the vessel, allowing it to hold some of its beauty for itself. 

Like Something Almost Being Said, Madoda: Let Us Now Praise Famous Men and Six Prayers, are showing at Southern Guild Cape Town until 22 August 2024. | southernguild.com

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Southern Guild, the trailblazing South African contemporary art and design gallery, makes history as it unveils its new States-side space in Los Angeles.

Having propelled functional art and collectible design on the African continent, Southern Guild is once again breaking new ground by becoming the first in South Africa to grace American soil with a permanent gallery space.

Nestled within the historic confines of a 1920s architectural gem at 747 N Western Avenue in Melrose Hill, the new gallery is designed by Evan Raabe Architecture Studio (ERĀS). Renowned for their illustrious projects such as the Hauser & Wirth Los Angeles flagship and Christie’s Beverly Hills, ERĀS lends its brilliance to craft an immersive experience. Featuring three large-scale exhibition spaces, as well as meeting and viewing rooms, its transformed interior will further provide a flexible setting in which to showcase their expansive roster of artists from South Africa, Benin, Congo, Iran, Kenya, Mali, Nigeria, and Zimbabwe, and beyond.

“Over the past 16 years Southern Guild has grown tremendously, from a single gallery in Cape Town and a small roster of artists to include numerous exhibition spaces, artists studios, a residency programme, and regular participation in art fairs around the world, but our expansion to the United States is truly a milestone. We are thrilled to broaden our reach by providing a permanent platform to showcase our artists’ unparalleled work in the United States,” says Co-founder Trevyn McGowan.

The dual inaugural exhibitions in Los Angeles will include Mother Tongues, which celebrates standout artists from the gallery’s roster, and a solo exhibition of monumental ceramic sculpture by Zizipho Poswa. Mother Tongues pays homage to the cultural tapestry of Africa, weaving personal narratives with socio-political dynamics, and features artists such as Zanele Muholi, Andile Dyalvane, Porky Hefer, Manyaku Mashilo, Madoda Fani, Kamyar Bineshtarigh and Oluseye, amongst others. Accompanying this group presentation, Zizipho Poswa’s solo exhibition will feature her most ambitious body of work to date, a series of sculptures reaching heights of over 8 feet tall, made during her recent summer-long residency at the Center for Contemporary Ceramics at California State University in Long Beach (CSULB).

“We were drawn to Los Angeles because its palpable vibrancy is similar to that of Cape Town and believe it will be perfectly suited to our particular brand of innovative art space. Our gallery model is a rather disruptive and progressive one and focuses on cultural preservation in all its forms, which in addition to rich craft traditions includes spirituality, ancestral knowledge, and ecology,” says Trevyn.

Ahead of its expansion, Southern Guild will participate in The Armory Show in New York from September 8-10, where they will showcase works that redefine African artistry including a new large-scale bronze sculpture by Zizipho Poswa, alongside work by Kamyar Bineshtarigh, Manyaku Mashilo, and Oluseye. In addition to their booth in the main fair, Zizipho Poswa will be featured in Armory Off-Site at the US Open. The artist will present a work from her Umthwalo series (meaning “load”), which pays tribute to Southern Africa’s rural women and the heavy burdens they balance on their heads, often walking long distances on foot.

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What to see Investec Cape Town Art Fair 2024 – the largest contemporary art fair in Africa.

A convergence of global and local creativity, this year’s Investec Cape Town Art Fair (ICTAF) promises an eclectic tapestry of exhibitions, discussions, and experiences that transcend boundaries. Taking place from 16th – 18th February 2024 at the Cape Town International Convention Centre (CTICC), the much-anticipated 11th edition of ICTAF invites patrons to immerse themselves in a whirlwind of cultural exploration.

Embracing the theme of ‘Unbound’, the curated sections of the 2024 fair strive to liberate art from constrictive narratives, amplifying diverse voices and igniting new realms of imagination.

Fabulous first-time features will join the lineup of favourite talks, walkabouts, parties, tours and opportunities to explore the Mother City’s art ecosystem, including the Yawa Off White Capsule and Lukhanyo Mdingi collab (the first of its kind at the fair), the brand-new focus on ceramics and GENERATIONS, a debut section featuring cross-generational dialogues between artists. For the first time, five emerging artists selected from twenty artists who have been through the City of Cape Town’s Emerging Artists Programme will be represented by a dedicated booth curated by curator Igsaan Martin. Additionally, Bo Kaap is set to bind the city with an activation which speaks to the theme of Unbound.

Here are the unmissable highlights that define this year’s spectacle, each a testament to the fair’s evolution and commitment to pushing artistic boundaries:

Fired Up

Get ready to be mesmerised by the ancient art of ceramics at the Investec Cape Town Art Fair. ‘Cabinet|Clay’ brings together a stellar lineup of artists, from the esteemed Ian Garrett to contemporary feminist voice Frances Goodman, each shaping clay into narratives that resonate with modernity. Dive into the world of Madoda Fani, Chuma Maweni, and Clive Sithole, as they redefine tradition with every stroke. Join the conversation with Michal Korycki and other visionaries as they explore clay’s boundless possibilities.

A New GENERATION

Witness the birth of intergenerational dialogue at this year’s fair with Generations. Curators Natasha Becker and Amogelang Maledu orchestrate a symphony of voices, from the iconic Esther Mahlangu to emerging talents like Bonolo Kavula. Explore the intersections of past and present as artists from Rorke’s Drift engage with contemporary visionaries, forging connections that transcend time.

What’s the ALTernative?

Step into the unconventional realm of ALT and witness art in its rawest form. From 16 Lerotholi to Untitled, delve into projects that defy convention and redefine artistic expression. Explore the diverse, innovative, and alternative universe that pulsates within and around the continent, breaking free from traditional paradigms.

Off the WALL

Embark on a journey through South African modernism with WALL. From the revolutionary palettes of Gregoire Boonzaier to the mystical icons of Larry Scully, experience a kaleidoscope of artistic innovation. Let the narratives of Sam Nhelengethwa, Sydney Kumalo, and Mary Sibanda weave a tapestry of South Africa’s rich artistic heritage.

Global Gathering

Experience a grand convergence of global creativity at the Investec Cape Town Art Fair. From Romina Ressia to Yinka Shonibare, artists from 50 countries unite under one roof, transcending borders and ideologies. Immerse yourself in a melting pot of emerging trends and cultural insights, shaping the future of contemporary art.

It’s a Material World

Explore the breathtaking world of material-driven artistry at the fair. From fabric and textiles to sculpted rubber, artists like Nicholas Hlobo and Usha Seejarim redefine creativity with every stroke. Discover the unexpected beauty in mundane objects and unravel the unique methodologies that fuel their artistic vision.

Fashion Forward + Retail Therapy

Indulge in a sensory extravaganza with Black Coffee, Themba, and Arie Fabian’s fashion platform, Yawa. From limited-edition capsules to exclusive artist ranges, experience artistry in every stitch. Dive into the world of Lukhanyo Mdingi and Virgil Abloh, where creativity knows no bounds.

Through the Lens: Capturing the Essence of Contemporary Africa

Witness the transformative power of photography in shaping contemporary African art. From Jürgen Schadeberg to Sarfo Emmanuel Annor, explore the myriad perspectives that define our cultural landscape. Let the lens of innovation guide you through a world where tradition meets modernity.

Cultural Connections: Nurturing Artistic Ecosystems

Celebrate the vibrant tapestry of Cape Town’s cultural institutions at the fair. From the Norval Foundation to the Lalela Project, witness the transformative impact of art on society. Engage with educational projects and exhibitions that foster cross-cultural understanding and ignite creative innovation.

Bo-Kaap and Beyond

Immerse yourself in the historic charm of Bo-Kaap with captivating pop-up exhibitions and performances. Explore the city’s rich artistic heritage through the lens of international galleries and local talents. Join the reimagining of Cape Town’s history and embark on a journey of cultural discovery.

Talks and Walks

Engage in thought-provoking conversations and guided walkabouts at the fair. From debates to presentations, delve into the heart of contemporary art with artists, curators, and collectors. Navigate the diverse offerings of the fair and gain invaluable insights into the artists and artworks on display.

The Walkabouts Programme

The Walkabouts Programme, curated by Art School Africa, will feature walkabouts by Dr Mariella Franzoni (curator of Tomorrows/ Today), Sean O’Toole (curator of SOLO), Phokeng Setai and Alex Richards (co-founders of Exhibition Match), Natasha Becker and Amogelang Maledu (co-curators of the new GENERATIONS section), Alice Toich (Artist), Max Melvill (Creative), Karabo Morule (Entrepreneur) and Andrew Lamprecht (Curator).

Investec Cape Town Art Fair takes place from 16th-18th February 2024 at the CTICC and around the city. For more info and tickets, visit investeccapetownartfair.co.za.

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Southern Guild presents Inkundla at Design Miami 2022 – a collection of 16 handcrafted objects existing in the material plane but born of the spiritual one, featuring the likes of ceramicists Zizipho Poswa, Andile Dyalvane, and Madoda Fani; artists Nandipha Mnthambo, Porky Hefer, and Rich Mnisi; sculptor Stanislaw Trzebinski and design duo Dokter and Misses.

Inkundla derives from the Xhosa word for the entrance to a homestead’s cattle enclosure; it is a place of community, the sacred and mundane, where ideas and gripes are exchanged. The handmade objects – distinct in their materiality and form, bound by their exploration of spiritual themes and the intent of hand – visually and functionally narrate the everyday lifeworlds of objects. That is, things imbued with symbolism that elevate the everyday towards the divine.

Highlights include:

Ceramic and bronze sculptures, uBuhle boKhokho, by Zizipho Poswa that are colossal in scale and intricacy and draw inspiration from the way African women express and celebrate themselves through hair.

Andile Dyalvane’s three ceramic forms pay homage to the grounding power of nature and, specifically, the large nests of sociable weaver birds the artist spent time studying on recent travels to the plains of the Karoo desert and the Northern Cape of South Africa.

Dokter and Misses’ new hand-painted LALA Limo server brings geometric planes into conversation with an arresting energy. It is a design commemoration of the birth of the duo’s first child and speaks of tension and potential, science and nature, trauma and joy.

Rich Mnisi’s Nyoka (Snake) console and Vutlhari (Wisdom) chandelier command a tense sensuality in the booth and drew on his family history, African mythology and the duality of fear and beauty.

• The complete list of artists include:
• Adam Birch
• Andile Dyalvane
• Charles Haupt
• Cheick Diallo
• Chuma Maweni
• Conrad Hicks
• Dokter and Misses
• Galia Gluckman
• Justine Mahoney
• Madoda Fani
• Nandipha Mntambo
• NØDE
• Porky Hefer
• Rich Mnisi
• Rodney Band
• Zizipho Poswa

Design Miami will be held from 30 November to 4 December 2022. For more information, visit designmiami.com.

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Southern Guild returns to the Investec Cape Town Art Fair in 2022 with a vast collection of multidisciplinary fine art works delivered by some of the most prolific and promising artists on the continent.

The Southern Guild booth promises to be a true exploration of the confluence of fine art and collectable design. Expect an extensive exhibition of paintings, ceramics, sculpture, functional art and the gallery’s first NFT work by Justine Mahoney – a piece based on the French mythological figure Mélusine.

Among the artists whose work will be presented are Navel Seakamela, Patrick Bongoy, Jozua Gerrard and Nandipha Mntambo who will be presenting her first collection of functional sculptures, ‘Transcending Instinct’. Additionally, several significant ceramic artworks by the likes of Andile Dyalvane, Zizipho Poswa, Madoda Fani and Chuma Maweni will feature.

Following the gallery’s success at Design Miami in December, Dyalvane, Poswa, Fani and Maweni will exhibit large-scale new works that lend an honourary nod to their cultural heritage, personal narratives and interests. Among these are monumental works by Poswa, glazed and painted in her signature exuberant colour, that form part of her Magodi series celebrating the majesty of traditional African hairstyles.

Seakamela, whose emotive portraits explore the tender side of masculinity, will show new mixed-media works on paper while emerging artist Jozua Gerrard’s series of large enamel paintings on glass reflects on intimacy in an age stolen by social media. Patrick Bongoy will debut a six-metre-wide wall-hanging painstakingly woven from strips of recycled rubber, while Dominique Zinkpé will present three abstract sculptures made from assemblages of carved wooden Ibeji dolls.

Other works making their debut include a bronze bust by Otto du Plessis; a bronze and timber table, etched brass panel and bronze sculpture by Stanislaw Trzebinski; a patinated aluminium mirror in a black granite base by Jesse Ede and Rich Mnisi’s Nyoka (“Snake”) console.

The Investec Cape Town Art Fair 2022 is on from 18 – 20 February 2022. For more information on what to expect at, go here.

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Southern Guild gallery will return to Design Miami this December with an exhibition of new ceramics commissioned specially for the fair. “Studio Visit” will feature more than 60 works by leading South African ceramic artists Zizipho Poswa, Andile Dyalvane, Chuma Maweni and Madoda Fani.

Southern Guild returns to Design Miami in December 2021 with Studio Visit, an exhibition of ceramics specifically commissioned for the fair, from four of South Africa’s most accomplished artists working in clay. Encompassing both monumental pieces and smaller studies, the gallery’s presentation will include several new series and individual works by Andile Dyalvane, Zizipho Poswa, Madoda Fani and Chuma Maweni. These artists explore aspects of traditional Xhosa culture and spirituality in their work while drawing on their personal experiences and deep belief systems. All four are encountering significant global interest with recent acquisitions by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Los Angeles County Museum of Art (LACMA) and other important foundations and collectors.

Studio Visit will present a depiction of an artist’s working space focusing entirely on ceramics, a thriving contemporary art form in South Africa and one of the continent’s great indigenous craft practices. Rising interest from museums and the public at large indicates that the world is suddenly appreciating what humans have been making since at least 9400 BC (when the oldest piece of African pottery was found in Mali).

Historically, domestic pottery played utilitarian, social and spiritual roles in San, Xhosa and Zulu culture in particular, defying Western categorisations of “art” as distinct from “design”. The diversity and innovation we are witnessing now in contemporary South African ceramics – from the deeply symbolic sculptures of Andile Dyalvane to the large-scale ceramic furniture of Chuma Maweni – pivots on this tradition, which finds its most well-known form in the beer pot, or ukhamba, a communal drinking vessel passed from person to person at ceremonies and social occasions.

As a medium, clay offers these artists broad scope for creative expression and storytelling. Studio Visit takes us behind the scenes of their practice as they foreground new techniques and achieve some of their most technically ambitious work to date. The booth will recreate a ceramic studio with large atelier windows and the 65 new ceramic works displayed on banding wheels, pedestals and tables, including a large hand-carved timber table by Chuma Maweni with collectable furniture by two of Africa’s most accomplished and recognised designers, Cheick Diallo and Gregor Jenkin, adding to the atmosphere of the studio setting.

Looking for more on local art? Take a look at Jan-Ernst’s new Ocean Pop Collection.

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When a New York couple opted to build a home in Cape Town, they honoured its location by furnishing it with pieces by some of South Africa’s most renowned artists.

It was 13 years ago in 2007, that New Yorkers Jim Brett and Ed Gray were first enchanted by Cape Town. At the time, Jim was Head of Home at leading US retailer Anthropologie and was on a buying trip to South Africa with local design promoter and exporter Trevyn McGowan of The Guild Group. The three of them embarked on a trip cross-country, visiting the studios of artisans and designers, and formed an immediate bond. “I had never met anyone who could match my passion for handicraft and design,” Jim says of Trevyn.

“As we travelled to South Africa more often, we fell in love with the country, specifically Cape Town and its environs,” Ed says. So, it came as no surprise to family and friends when he and Jim decided to build a home for themselves in Hout Bay, just 30 minutes from Cape Town’s city centre, in which they hope to eventually spend six months of the year. Enlisting the help of Trevyn and her husband and business partner Julian, it was only natural that they would continue their trajectory of working with local designers, furnishing the home with pieces by some of the country’s most prominent names.

For the new build, the couple briefed architect Francois Swart of PADIA, requesting barn-like structures that suited the expansive property, on which they also have a guesthouse. Pitched roofs, a silo structure, and a variety of window shapes brought this vision to the fore. “As a reference to the informal way sheds grow into existence, there is a certain charm in the creative use and placing of windows,” says Francois, explaining the forms that are stackable and hidden in places, lowered for framed views in other instances, or inserted flush against walls in corners in order to allow light to flood in unobstructed. “The ‘journey’, surrounded by nature, can be experienced open or closed, and doubles as a pause area that can be used as a sunroom or gateway to the pool garden,” says Francois of the thoroughfare that offers glimpses of the furnishings beyond.

“It’s really enjoyable creating a world for people you care about,” says Trevyn of the project that has dressed the home in pieces by the likes of Gregor Jenkin, Charles Haupt and Laurie Wiid van Heerden, designers represented by the McGowans’ collectible design gallery, Southern Guild. “It’s a beautiful homage for the work we all continue to do for South African design,” she says of the result.

The newness of the home and its interiors paint a fresh African story for the US couple. “It’s important to us that our home feels warm and welcoming, with a degree of humility,” says Jim. Their modus operandi in eliciting the desired warmth was a crafted use of colour. An abstract artwork by John Murray mounted above the dining room cabinet – where striking tones mix with neutral hues – informed the colour choices for sofas, walls and decorative objects.

As with the varying patterns in John Murray’s painting, a myriad forms exist in the home – from tapered pot plants and circular nesting tables to curvaceous dining chairs and elliptical sideboards. “There are very few hard corners on the furniture items,” Jim explains of their brief. “Ovals, circles, or rectangles with rounded corners… it’s very subtle details that add a softness to the experience.” Equally considered is the collection of ceramic vessels. “I’m a bit of a ceramics junkie – I just can’t seem to stop buying them,” says Jim. It’s a passion he and Trevyn have shared since the start of their friendship, which made it easy for her to suggest new pieces by Andile Dyalvane, Zizipho Poswa, Anthony Shapiro, John Bauer, Madoda Fani and Chuma Maweni for the home.

What began as a professional exploration between Jim and Trevyn over a decade ago has resulted in a very personal celebration of South African design. “We still manage to inspire each other,” Jim smiles, gesturing around the home that proves his point.

Looking for more architectural inspiration? Take a look at the colourful, bold contemporary Johannesburg home.

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Japanese import atelier WAZA Japan Labo is hosting TEA BOWL, an exhibition run in collaboration with IMISO Ceramics Studio and Sarah Walters Gallery, showcasing limited-edition Japanese-inspired tea bowls crafted by local ceramicists.

After speaking with Sarah Walters Gallery and IMISO Ceramics Studio, WAZA soon found itself with a list of 17 local potters, each of whom has their own distinctive style and were interested in making tea bowls, inspired by Japan. “The brief was open and intentionally non-restrictive: Feel free to look at traditional Japanese styles, think of your favourite tea experience, and then give us a South African interpretation of a tea bowl (chawan – 茶 碗),” explains the WAZA team.

The limited-edition tea bowls, created by Andile Dyalvane, Paul de Jongh, Nkuthazo Dyalvane, Madoda Fani, Amelia Jacobs, Zizipho Poswa, Lungiswa Joe, Ralph Johnson, Nico Liebenberg, Hennie Meyer, Lisa Ringwood, Lindsay Scott, Martin Swart, David Walters, Sarah Walters, Sinethemba Xola and Yogi de Beer, will be on sale to the public from 14 – 31 July 2020.

Each potter will have a limited number of tea bowls for sale at WAZA Japan Labo in Cape Town (by appointment only), as well as via an electronic catalogue (email info@wazashop.co.za). To secure a time slot to visit the exhibition, click here.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CCeMfFDJcoF/

For more information, visit wazashop.co.za or follow @wazashop_za on Instagram.

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Cape Town-based gallery Southern Guild is heading to Design Miami 2019 with a bold new offering, including the Molecules collection by acclaimed South African designer Porky Hefer.

The new collection of hanging leather pods will form the gallery booth’s centrepiece. The series comprises three large suspended orbs with titles that allude to the chemical compounds they represent; Dihydrogen Monoxide, Fluoroheliate Monoxide and Hydrogen Difluoride. The orbs, which are dressed in brightly-coloured leather, a nod towards the international colour codes all atoms are known by (white for hydrogen, red for oxygen, green for chlorine), were manufactured by Cape Town-based leather artisans Wolf & Maiden. Inside, a soft and inviting interior beckons viewers to climb inside.

Molecules reveals Porky’s fascination with the reactions and energy a piece can generate in empty space. Inspired by the fact that molecules are made up of atoms held together by chemical bonds that form as a result of the sharing or exchange of electrons, the artist encourages viewers to explore the complex bond of human connection, one that goes beyond the one between people and deeper into the natural world.

Southern Guild will showcase 13 never-before-seen works that encompass energetic colourways, forms of the future and attention-commanding shapes. Along with Porky’s Molecules, you can expect to see collectible furniture, kinetic lighting, sculpture and large-scale ceramics by Dokter and Misses, Rich Mnisi, Andile Dyalvane, Justine Mahoney, MAK with NØDE, NØDE, Madoda Fani and Zizipho Poswa.

Design Miami 2019 runs from 3 – 8 December 2019. For more information, visit southernguild.co.za.

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