creative cape town annual 2010

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ANNUAL 2010

WORLD DESIGN

CAPITAL EDITIONCREATIVE CAPE TOW

N ANNUAL 2010 ART SOUTH AFRICA PUBLISHING

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Y&R_CREATIVE_CPT_AD__2010_AW_P.indd 1 9/8/10 11:22 AMSPSPrint_Loeries_P_V1.indd 1 9/14/10 4:58 PM

Michael Steven-son Art Gallery IG Productions Orange Films Na-nine Fine Wear Inscape Design college Ascent Fi-nancial Solutions Chameleon Cast-ing Future Man-agers La Rosa Spanish Dance Theatre Lisa Fir-er CeramicsThe Showroom Soft Light City Boyd Architectural Models The Best Blind Co. Stock-home Sunbounce Meyer + Foster Architects Box Living

Michael Stevenson Art Gallery IG ProductionsOrange Filmsnine Fine Wear Inscape Design collegenancial SolutionsChameleon Casting Future ManagersSpanish Dance Theatreer CeramicsShowroomLight CityArchitectural ModelsBlind Co.homeMeyer + Foster ArchitectsLiving

C ape Town’s East C i t y p r e c i n c t ,

o r Wo o ds to c k as locals know it, is set to follow the same global trend seen i n L o n d o n’s E a s t End and New York’s Meatpacking District, where an expanding landscape of creative and entrepreneurial b u s i n e s s e s h a v e boosted inner city development.

B u c h a n a n S qu a re h as b e e n renovated into what is now R100 million worth of impressive commercial space, reflecting the funky and cosmopolitan revival of Woodstock.

Traditionally part of the old meat-packing district, an eclectic mix has been created by combining the original factory feel with sexy, minimalist styling and the spaciousness of modern interiors. The best of the buildings’ raw, authentic design elements – l ike the steel doors, face brick exterior and cobblestone pathways – have b een retained and enhanced to a l l ow m o re natur a l light and capitalize on the spectacular views of Table Mountain, Signal Hill and Table Bay Harbour.

With space star t ing f rom a r e a s o n a b l y p r i ce d R7, 0 0 0/m 2, compared with similarly renovated office buildings in the area that are commanding prices upwards of R10.000/m2 Buchanan Square has

attracted a cluster of creative tenants who enjoy the community vibe of the complex. The Armoury, The Hills and Buchanan Buildings make up Buchanan Square – 19,900m2 of contemporary workspace in total.

M i r r o r i n g o v e r s e a s t r e n d s , limited space and rising costs

in Cape Town’s CBD has initiated the migration of many SME’s into Woodstock and the eastern city area. No longer just a “destination point”, the precinct now boasts a number of high profile addresses and has become part of a strip of services and retail venues that enhance each other’s trade.

The combination of its unique aesthetics, its vibe, its proximity to town and its superb location, has attracted a creative community of tenants who feel that there is a feeling of excitement here. That it’s the place to launch an innovative or upmarket product or service.G O O D S T O C k

Nick from Stockhome, a custom design kitchen company, says the character of the building was the key attraction to Buchannan Square. They have noticed an increase in trade from people who choose to pass that way, en route into town, due to the shared profile of businesses in the area.

Box Living furniture company were already in the area. Buchanan Square had all the attributes they were looking for: great development, centrally situated on the Woodstock strip and neighbours whose nature of business would compliment theirs. Tristan from Box Living feels there is a good energy about the place, and that it ’s more exciting than town, especially from a creative, entrepreneurial aspect.

I N D u S T R I A L C h I CAndrew from Buchanan Studios’

immediately fell in love with the semi-industrial feel of the building and changed his mind about how he intended to use the space. The fact that there are mostly creative tenants, another production company in the complex, and Ogilvy over the road, he gets the feeling that this is the “next place to be”. It ’s connected the dots between The Palms Lifestyle Centre, The Biscuit Mill and Old Castle Brewery.h Av I N G A F I N e T I M e

Nanine Finewear, one of the or iginal tenants , always loved the old, high ceilings and funky industr ial feel of the building and is naturally excited about the transformation that has taken place. For her, the space is a well-priced, perfectly conceptualized creative space – a visible and accessible address with well-known landmarks nearby

Inscape Design College feel their new space at Buchanan Square lends itself perfectly to creativity. As educators in fields such as graphic design, interior design, architectural drafting and interior decorating, their position couldn’t be better.

T h e s y mb iot ic re lat io nship between businesses in Buchanan Square, and in the area on the whole, boosts the district in an unprecedented way. As for everyone in Buchanan Square, they just really, really like their neighbours.

Frederica, Joost and

Sophie of Michael

Stevenson Art

Gallery

Mandy from

Orange Films

virtually invented

the art of

production

Nanine of Nanine

Finewear, brings a

sense of style ...

Tiaan Vorster,

a partner in

Meyer+Vorster

Architects

Alastair and

Antonello of

La Bottega, a

delicious Italian

eatery

Gary of The

Showroom knows a

thing or two about

shoes ...

Debbie is one half

of the creative duo

behind The Best

Blind Company

Nic of Stockhome,

a custom design

kitchen company

For more

information on

Buchanan Square,

call Ivo Nestle on

021 425 1000

Creative Circle

Buchannan Square keeps fighting fit at Cape Town’s most original and coolest gym – The Armoury Boxing Club. Tamsin is sparring here with Buchanan’s sales agent, Ivo Nestle (021 425 1000).

Creative Cape Town 2010 Spread.indd 2-3 2010/08/26 10:32:23 AM

Design mindedZayd Minty, editor,Creative Cape Town Annual 2010,The World DesignCapital Bid 2014 Issue

In our inaugural Creative Cape Town Annual, published in 2009, we introduced you to our very active and creative Cape Town Central City. We sketched out Creative Cape Town’s decision to place its key support behind design in the next few years with such lead projects as the East City Design Initiative and World Design Capital bid. We recognised in our work the importance of design as a cross cutting area of support to reach a wide range of creative industries in the city. We showed too how this focus on design could build on the gains of the massive infrastructure developments brought by the 2010 World Cup – not just changing the way we use the city, but also how we position the city to the world. Importantly we suggested our local distinctiveness is the strongest raw material we have in positioning us as a creative capital. The response to the annual was brilliant, both from advertisers and readers. A total of 6,000 copies were distributed free to creatives, politicians, the media and business leaders. Delegates at the 2009 Loerie Awards were the first to receive the annual. We have continued our relationship with this vibrant awards event by not only launching the 2010 edition during the Loeries again, but creating a whole new event, Creative Week Cape Town, aimed at showcasing the creativity in the city. Since last year our work has grown in leaps and bounds. We now have a very popular Facebook presence, a regular e-newsletter, a well-liked creative clusters programme. Via the special edition of City Views, focussed on Creative Week Cape Town, we plan to reach many new audiences. Through our work we helped foster the Cape Town Design Network, an organisation responsive to the needs

of local designers. We also created the space for cultural stakeholders in the Company’s Garden to find a common agenda. The city centre has seen ongoing growth of creative eventing. Highlights so far this year include the Spier Contemporary, which radically changed people’s perceptions of the City Hall, bringing more than 20,000 people to an exhibition of South African contemporary visual culture, over two months. We also saw the appointment of a dynamic new director for the Iziko South African National Gallery, Riason Naidoo, and a new CEO for Iziko Museums, Rooksana Omar. The wonderful Fugard Theatre opened in the East City and is the new home for the theatre company Isango Portobello. The design store Church opened in the East City as did the Open Innovation Studios. The East City Design Initiative has grown in significance and interest. Die Antwoord, a sub-cultural music group became a global sensation courtesy of the “interweb” outperforming any South African band in history internationally. This year’s edition of the Creative Cape Town Annual is dedicated to Cape Town’s bid for World Design Capital 2014. We launched our bid at this year’s Design Indaba, four months before the 2010 World Cup. We continued to work extensively behind the scenes prior to and during the World Cup, recognising that the event’s success will spur people to look for more ways to keep inspired and connected in and for the city. Win or lose, we believe the bid process itself will be highly beneficial, not just for the creative community but also to the city as a whole. We value your engagement with it.

Zayd Minty

Creative Cape Townsupports and nurtures the creative and knowledge economy of the Central City of Cape Town. Its aim is to ensure that the Central City becomes a leading centre for knowledge, innovation, creativity & culture in Africa & the South.

PAGE 08 / 01 WINNING THROUGH DESIGNLorelle Bell explains why this is important to all Capetonians

PAGE 30 / 02 WHAT’S REALLY GOING ON Is Cape Town a future-orientated city? By Edgar Pieterse

PAGE 32 / 03 REIMAGINING THE fUTURE Mark Swilling talks about past problems and future choices

PAGE 34 / 04 THE cONTINENTAL cONTExT Africa is a hotbed of socially responsible design. By Mugendi M’Rithaa

PAGE 36 / 05 SOcIALLY cONScIOUS DESIGN Architects are setting new standards in Cape Town

PAGE 40 / 06 OPEN AccESS cITY Andrew Boraine addresses the developmental challenges of the IRT

PAGE 49 / 07 THE THINGS WE MAkE Photographer Guto Bussab presents Cape Town’s flourishing creative economy

PAGE 60 / 08 WHERE cREATIvE TALENT MEET The Cape Town International Convention Centre. By Rashid Toefy

PAGE 62 / 09 HOME IS WHERE THE MUSIc IS Rashid Lombard on photography and the Cape Town International Jazz Fetival

PAGE 66 / 10 cREATIvE cENTRAL The East City neighbourhood is home to talented designers and entrepreneurs

PAGE 68 / 11 INSPIRING INNOvATION The Cape Craft & Design Institute and its love of the local. By Erica Elk

PAGE 70 / 12 NETWORkED INTELLIGENcE Jenny McKinnell on Cape Town’s networked IT entrepreneurs

PAGE 72 / 13 GOLD REWARD The 32nd annual Loerie Awards. By Andrew Human

PAGE 74 / 14 IMAGINE cITY HALL Makeovers expose how the old City Hal as a vibrant cultural facility

PAGE 78 / 15 cREATIvE LEADERSHIP Cape Town is a leading destination for creative students

PAGE 80 / 16 kNOWLEDGE SHARED IS kNOWLEDGE MULTIPLIED* Finding a common voice for design in Cape Town. By Mel Hagen

CONDITIONS OF ACCEPTANCENo responsibility can be taken for the quality and accuracy of the reproductions, as this is dependent on the quality of the material supplied. No responsibility can be taken for typographical errors. The publishers reserve the right to refuse and edit material. All prices and specifications are subject to change without notice. The opinions expressed in this publication are not necessarily those of the publisher. No responsibility will be taken for any decision made by the reader as a result of such opinions. COPYRIGHT Creative Cape Town. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written consent from the publisher. Creative Cape Town does not accept responsibility for unsolicited material. ISSN-2075-5732

PUBLISHER &CREATIVE DIRECTORBrendon Bell-Robertswww.artsouthafrica.com

EDITORZayd [email protected]

CREATIVE CAPE TOWN10th Floor,The Terraces, 34 Bree StreetCape Town, 8001T +27(0)21 419 1881F +27(0)21 419 0894E info@capetownpartnership.co.zawww.creativecapetown.netwww.capetownpartnership.co.za

ART SOUTH AFRICA MAGAZINEP.O.Box 16067, Vlaeberg, 8018T +27(0]21 465 9108f +27[0]86 656 931E [email protected]

art southafrica

Contents

The Central City welcomes the Loeries Awards




back to town with Creative Week Cape Town.












Celebrate in Long Street on 2 and 3 October.





CITYVIEWSCLEAN | SAFE | CARING

September 2010CREATIVES

CITYVIEWS

WHAT DOES THE CCID DO?

Security R15,199,909 52%

Urban Management R 6,115,526 21%

Social Development R 1,763,329 6%

Marketing & Events R 2,318,267 8%

Operational Costs R 3,838,100 13%

TOTAL R29,235,131 100%

CCID 2009/2010 Budget

52%21%

6%

8%

13%

The CCID offers safety and security, quality urban management and

social development services to stakeholders in the Central City.

THE CENTRAL CITY IMPROVEMENT DISTRICT:KEEPING THE CAPE TOWN CENTRAL CITY

offering news and views on the central city:

50 000 copies distributed throughout the city.

READ OUR MONTHLY

CITY VIEWS

SAFE CLEAN CARING INFORMED

Many children and young adults

living on the streets have severe drug

addiction problems. More often than

not, the money they receive from

begging is used to buy their next “fix”.

The CCID therefore requests that

members of the public do not give

money or handouts directly.

Straatwerk

has job rehabilitation

projects for men

and women.

021 425 0140

The Haven’s

vision is to get the

homeless home.

021 425 4700

The Homestead

provides residential

care and family

integration for boys.

021 461 7470

Ons Plek

provides residential

care while undertaking

reunification process

for girls.

021 465 4829

The Carpenters Shop

provides rehabilitation

services and skills

training for adults.

021 461 5508

Salesian Institute

Youth Projects

provide education, skills

training and rehabilitation

to vulnerable youth.

021 425 1450

www.capetownpartnership.co.za

Contact the Central City

Improvement District’s

(CCID’s) Social Development

Department for further

information or assistance.

Pat 021 419 1881 | Dean 082 928 3862

Headman Sirala-Rala 082 262 0113

Mark Williams 082 262 0112

www.capetowncid.co.za

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01/DESIGNING CAPE TOWNWhen it comes to Cape Town there is a distinct difference between what visitors and even proud residents would choose in a show-and-tell. Invariably it’s the iconic natural landscape that is reflected in the images. But it’s the experience of people – their diversity, warmth, generosity, hospitality and ingenuity – that get a mention. Hopefully, one impact of that big 2010 event will be that the world gets to appreciate this city, this country and, in fact, this continent, not as a combination of exotic beauty spots, wild life and trouble, but as modern, urban and effective place in which people, rather than the big five, live.

TOP The new Central Terminal Building of the Cape International Airport opened on November 7, 2009. Rod Stevens of Blueprint Architects working together with a dynamic consulting team designed this key gateway to Cape Town for the Airports Company of South Africa. fAcING PAGE An artistically remade zebra, part of the “Not All is Black and White” project held during the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Each of the 33 zebras, placed strategically around the city, was inspired by a quote from Nelson Mandela.Photo: Anita van Zyl

Cape Town is bidding for World Design Capital 2014. Lorelle Bell explains why this is important to all Capetonians

Winningthroughdesign

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01/DESIGNING CAPE TOWNSo the new images are of people – blowing vuvuzelas, wearing makarapas, costumed in wigs, flags and oversized sunglasses, celebrating, mingling and enjoying themselves. And they’re doing this in urban spaces, in restaurants, pubs, public squares, whole city roads, using trains and buses.Whatever the impact of the FIFA World Cup, one result has been that citizens of Cape Town have been reintroduced to their city. But Cape Town, home to 3.4 million people, is – like many cities the world over – grappling with meeting the needs of a burgeoning urban population, together with creating an environment for the investment and business development needed to fuel the economic growth that must support them.Cities that work are sustainable ones, that prioritise people – their engagement with the city and their connection and ease of access to opportunities for work, services, education and cultural and leisure activities. Issues of proximity to these opportunities and public transport are therefore key; and densification, intensification of use and vibrant public spaces are critical aspects of urban design and development.Apartheid social engineering turned Cape Town into a sprawling city where the majority of citizens were (and still are) cut off from each other, from resources and opportunities. A huge housing backlog, unemployment, poverty and unequal access to education and health services are just some of the challenges facing the city.What, you may wonder, does this have to do with design? Everything really. Employing design thinking and processes in addressing Cape Town’s challenges is critical if we want to create a future city that is sustainable and fair.

TOP The Grand Parade was the key official fan park during the World Cup, with the Cape Town City Hall gaining iconic prominence in the process. 560 000 people used this fan park to enjoy the soccer and an entertainment programme.

OPPOSITE It’s the fans that make a World Cup special. Cape Town showed its party colours with locals and international fans turning up in large numbers to make and experience the vibe in the streets of the city. First time visitors were inspired by the energy and warmth of locals around the country.

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01/WORLD DESIGN CAPITALA project of the International Council for Societies of Industrial Design (Icsid), a non-profit organisation that protects and promotes the interests of the profession of industrial design, the World Design Capital initiative is a “city promotion project” that advances the value of design to cities. Recognising that more than half the world’s population now resides in urban areas, World Design Capital aims to advance the use of design to address the challenges arising out of this increasing urbanisation. According to the organisers, design is “an increasingly fundamental tool in all levels of public and private development. For cities, design is at their very core and is leveraged in business, with citizens, as well as in government to make cities more attractive, more liveable and more efficient.”The future success of cities, they argue, “lies in the hands of those who plan, design and manage the shared spaces and functions of their city”.One of the mechanisms for acknowledging cities doing this is the conferral of World Design Capital status on a city. A biennial award, World Design Capital status is awarded to cities that are committed to using design in addressing challenges and implementing their vision for a future city. This status allows the designated city to showcase its design achievements and aspirations through a yearlong programme of design-led events and activities. The current recipient of the award is Seoul. World Design Capital is different from other design competitions which focus on specific design sectors in that it is explicitly awarded to cities that use design for their social, economic and cultural development. The bidding process for World Design Capital 2014 opens in the third quarter of 2010.In the first phase, bidding cities are required to submit an application detailing their city’s design assets, as well as their vision and plans for a future city. From these submissions two cities are shortlisted, the finalists then required to expand on their bid proposal. The second round judging process includes a visit by an Icsid panel. The winning city is announced two years before the yearlong programme of events begins.

The Cape Town Stadium adds a new quality to the already iconic view of Cape Town with its spectacular location between Table Mountain and the Atlantic Ocean. The stadium was part of an extensive redevelopment of the city including the central Cape Town train station, public spaces, bicycle lanes, highways, bridges, public art and a new bus rapid transport system. These projects have left a significant legacy for citizens, making the city centre a vibrant stage for future mega-events and positioning it as a must-experience destination. Photo of stadium on facing page: Bruce Sutherland,

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01/COMPETITIVE EDGECape Town is bidding for World Design Capital 2014. While cities bidding for the prestigious award are not publicly announced, it is understood that Bilbao is bidding along with a number of Chinese cities. Cape Town, which hopes to clinch the 2014 award, has neither the obvious design assets of a Bilbao nor the budget of China. It strengths, however, are numerous and include the city’s unique locality, set against a national park, and the distinction of being cupped between two national heritage sites: the iconic Table Mountain frames Cape Town, while Robben Island, symbol of South African political resistance, lies just offshore. Cape Town’s culturally diverse population, a blend of many cultures, including a diverse indigenous population, the progeny of slaves from African colonies, South East Asia, India and European immigrants, gives the city its rich creolised character. The city’s food, music, dance and language reflect this rich variety – as does Cape Town’s wealth of good designers and designs. The CBD alone is home to more than a thousand creative industry enterprises, nearly a half of which are design-related. They include large architecture and urban design practices, advertising agencies and IT companies, as well as smaller enterprises like fashion, jewellery and surface designers. The leading-edge design conference and expo, Design Indaba, has been held annually in Cape Town for the past 14 years and the annual Toffie Popular Culture Festival, launched in 2009, offers workshops on a wide range of design disciplines. Many Cape Town designers have been awarded numerous global design awards, notably the architects Luyanda Mpahlwa, winner of the Curry Stone Design Prize for his 10x10 low-cost housing solution, and Carin Smuts, winner of the 2008 Global Award for Sustainable Architecture; and the team of industrial designer Philip Goodwin, electronics designer Stefan Zwahlen and project leader John Hutchinson, who won the Index Design Award for the Freeplay Fetal Heart Rate Monitor. Local environmental design is also having an impact. The Green Goal programme, which helped offset the World Cup’s carbon footprint, has been widely acclaimed. At the same time a locally designed electric car, the Joule, is ready to go into production. So we do have design to share. But, more importantly, the city has a compelling story to tell, particularly in how it is using design to overcome the huge challenges caused by apartheid.

TOP Cape Town is a major African hub for design, filled with great designers, design events, design education and support institutions, and publications. MIDDLE AND BOTTOM Award winning architect, Carin Smuts has worked on a number of community centres throughout the province, such as the Dawid Klaaste Multipurpose Centre (Lainsburg) and Guga S’Thebe Arts Centre in Langa.fAcING PAGE TOP The Cape Town Klopse Carnival is a unique city festival arising from the period of slavery and the creolized history of the city. It is a well loved working class celebration of the city with its own unique music, fashion and performance. Photo: Jacques MaraisfAcING PAGE BOTTOM Luyanda Mphalwa’s low cost housing design solutions show what’s possible when design meets social responsibility. His beautiful, award winning design proposals for a more dignified “RDP” home uses sustainable technology. Photo: Guto Bussab

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01/THE STORYOF CAPE TOWN2014 is a landmark year in South Africa’s history, marking two decades of democracy. Apartheid was designed to divide. The story of Cape Town since 1994 has been about learning to reconnect.At the turn of the twentieth century, Cape Town was a relatively contained port city with a diverse population of just over 100,000, mainly residing between Table Mountain and the sea. The Grand Parade – a public space located virtually in the centre of the early city – was the place where Capetonians gathered to celebrate, do business, sometimes even protest.With the establishment of the Union of South Africa in 1910, huge buildings began to be added to the landscape as the city’s status as provincial and legislative capital grew. In addition, Cape Town’s profile as the country’s cultural centre was reflected in the opening (in 1930) of the South African National Gallery in the Company’s Garden. While racial segregation and discrimination were already promoted by national government, the city remained a relative melting pot.District Six (the Sixth Municipal District of Cape Town), perched just above and to the east of the central city, within sight of the docks, symbolised this diversity. Settled in the 1800s by a mixed community of freed slaves, merchants, immigrants and labourers, the area’s population expanded with migrants escaping rural poverty, until it was home to about ten percent of the city’s population. Its dense, vibrant, culturally rich mix of races, languages and religions gave District Six its cosmopolitan character. Cape Town’s own version of jazz – modelled after the musical traditions of Africa rather than America – has its roots here, as do many renowned writers, educationists, political activists and artists. Sports clubs, community centres, places of worship for different religions, schools and many small businesses provided for the needs of this diverse community.As white South Africans grew more affluent, benefiting from the unfair labour policies promoting their interests – in 1947, a local bylaw placed the onus on Cape Town employers to pay for repatriating black South Africans when their work contracts expired,

A series of photos taken in the 1950’s and 60’s hark back to a period when the city centre had an active public culture. District Six was the epitome of energy, culturally rich with a dense cosmopolitan ecosystem containing all the elements of a good city: pedestrian friendly, vibrant public spaces and cultural institutions and well used public transport. TOP “Fairyland” by Cloete Breytenbach. Courtesy of the District Six Museum. BOTTOM “The British Cinema” by Jansjie Wissema. Courtesy of the District Six Museum. fAcING PAGE “Boy on Bus” by Cloete Breytenbach. Courtesy of the District Six Museum

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effectively discouraging their employment in the city – their social status decreased and they started moving out of the crowded, integrated inner-city. Residential segregation became a feature of Cape Town and the city’s solution to its lack of housing was to develop sub-economic housing on the Cape Flats strictly along racial lines. While racial prejudice was already deeply rooted in the colonial-era town planning, the twentieth century saw this prejudice enacted into law. As far back as the 1920s, black South African men were designated guest workers in urban areas. Town planning laws reinforced this system: a 1937 law prevented black South Africans from buying land except from other so-called “Africans”; hostels (as opposed to homes) catering for male workers were erected in the township of Langa in 1948. The net outcome of this programme of discrimination denied black South Africans an opportunity to live and work in the city. Life for non-white families historically resident in Cape Town became equally miserable, residents of mixed-race neighbourhoods like District Six banished to the urban fringe. In 1966 District Six was declared a white neighbourhood in terms of the Group Areas Act. Residents were forced from their homes, their homes bulldozed and their lives all but erased. The reasons provided by government for the removals were that the area was a slum, crime, prostitution, gambling and alcoholism rendering it dangerous. Most residents believed that the reason for their removal was the land’s value, being close to the CBD, the harbour and the mountain. All counted, about 150,000 people, including 60,000 residents of District Six, were forced out of the central city, causing wholesale destruction of areas and communities.Ironically, the area was never developed for whites and remained a stark, empty scar on the landscape for about 30 years. The only development was the contested construction of the Cape Technikon, now the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT).

fAcING PAGE TOPP19 The school programme at the Lwandle Migrant Museum in Somerset West tells the story of black exclusion in the Cape. fAcING PAGE MIDDLE A public art piece by Berni Searle (2000) speaks to the complex space people of mixed descent inhabited during apartheid. In particular it talks to some of the difficult politics in the Cape, which often sets it apart from other South African provinces. Photo by Nick Aldridge fAcING PAGE BOTTOM A kinetic public art piece by Kevin Brand on the desolate windswept landscape of contemporary District Six, originally part of the District Six Sculpture Festival (1997). The work refers to the extreme loss experienced by former residents, who were forcibly removed to poorly serviced dormitory suburbs outside of the city, while their beloved District Six was reduced to rubble. Courtesy of District Six Museum. THIS PAGE TOP AND BOTTOM LEfT The Athlone Towers, detonated on August 22, 2010, became an alternative icon for people from the Cape Flats. It was this industrial feature, rather than Table Mountain, which gave the area its defining feature. It’s importance for the Cape Flats was recognized in the logo of an important arts festival in 1986, which was banned by apartheid authorities. Design by Gaby Cheminais. THIS PAGE BOTTOM RIGHTAfrikaaps! Afrikaans as claimed back by people of colour has found fresh resonances in Cape Town’s positive brand of Hip Hop. Photo courtesy of Dylan Vally.

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01/DISCONNECTED CITYDuring high apartheid (1948-1989) segregation became more extreme and municipal housing schemes were located further from white residential areas and separated from those of other race groups by industrial areas, railway lines and greenbelts. While these developments decoupled people of different races from each other, modernisation and industrialisation were in the process of influencing the city’s development in a way that also disconnected people from the central city.Modern ships being larger, the docks required expansion and plans to reclaim land from the foreshore went ahead, releasing land for development. This land could have helped realise an earlier vision of the urban design of the city – one of the sea being connected visually through wide boulevards to the parliamentary precinct, and Table Mountain beyond. Instead, an increase in the number of motor vehicles and the need for more roads took precedence, and the city’s foreshore area became a mess of car parks, broad roads and overpasses, cutting off the city from the sea and resulting in it being virtually inaccessible to pedestrians. The interpretation of modern architecture – seen in the design of buildings like the Civic Centre and the Reserve Bank, which stood closed off from the streets – served to dehumanise the city further. If well-designed buildings are meant to make a positive impact on their environment and the surrounding community, this trend in architecture achieved the reverse. A once vibrant city, Cape Town closed in on itself, shutting out its citizens and encouraging decay, crime and degeneration.

TOP Until the 1950’s the city was still comfortably connected to the sea. The much-loved boardwalk played an important role in the lives of citizens and the city had a sense of scale and density that made it socially rich and economically viable. MIDDLE In the 1960’s transport planners devised what would later become known as “Solly’s Folly”, building part of a ring road that was planned to go around the city, effectively cutting the city off from the sea. The project was never completed, but it signalled a long period of preference for cars over pedestrians. BOTTOM By the 1970’s a series of modernist buildings, many in the “brutalist” style, often government buildings, were completed. This started a trend that would continue into the 1990’s, of architecture that turned its back on people. Together with underinvestment in public space and with many Capetonians moving to suburbs, the city centre lost much of its earlier vibrancy.

fAcING PAGE TOP A historical photo of the connection of city to sea, which was destroyed shortly after this picture was taken. By 1950 the foreshore had been reclaimed from the sea leaving a large empty tract of land on which the foreshore highways would be built.BOTTOM AND RIGHT Today Cape Town is reclaiming common ground: new public spaces have been created, or old ones revived, public art commissioned and sidewalks extended. An urban park is in development around the Cape Town stadium. A beautification project in Long Street has seen storeowners customising newly installed pot plants by the CCID. A new public art piece by Gavin Younge, entitled Olduvai, stands outside an extension to the CTICC.

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01/RECONNECTING THE CITYPolitical opposition to apartheid reached its zenith in the 1980s and Cape Town’s streets once again rang to the sounds of voices and footsteps as Capetonians reclaimed the city in political marches, masses and mass meetings. Fitting then, that when Nelson Mandela was released, it was on the Grand Parade that tens of thousands of residents gathered to greet him at his first public appearance. Bounded by the City Hall, the Castle and the Cape Town railway station, the Grand Parade’s significance as the centre of public life in Cape Town had been in decline and the space was used mainly for parking and market stalls trading in a miscellany of goods. This trend continued during the 1990s and it was only recently that the Grand Parade was upgraded and successfully used as Cape Town’s official FIFA Fan Fest during the World Cup. There are now plans to revitalise this public space, restoring it for the use of everyone.For the past decade the inner city itself has been the centre of a major regeneration project, driven and funded by a private/public partnership. While the Cape Town Partnership facilitates strategic collaboration that has brought development and investment to the city, its operational arm, the Central City Improvement District, has created a safe, clean environment. The restoration of District Six to its historic claimants and redevelopment of the area is underway, albeit painstakingly slowly and beset with political challenges. The area linking it to the Central City is, however, enjoying a rapid reawakening. The East City, as it’s called, is occupied by an increasing number of creative industry enterprises, as well as artists, musicians and writers, and theatres, coffee shops and restaurants – reprising the precinct’s role as the centre of creativity in the city. This is also where the East City Design Initiative is planned, an innovation hub focused on design and ICT that will provide the space and impetus for those in creative industries to benefit from the growing knowledge economy. What was once the Cape Technikon is now a campus of the Cape Peninsula University of Technology where the unique Faculty of Informatics and Design promotes socially conscious design, and staff and students collaborate with communities to find design solutions to social challenges.

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fAcING PAGE TOP A historic image of the City Hall, which looks out over the busy Grand Parade, home to the oldest running markets in the country. fAcING PAGE MIDDLE A crowd assembled on Strand Street for the Cape Town Peace March, September 13, 1989. Photo by Eric Miller. This important moment, led by key civic and religious personalities, brought people of difference together as one, in the face of a crumbling apartheid state. It resulted in similar marches happening throughout the country heralding the beginning of political change in the country. fAcING PAGE BOTTOM 38 Special Café is one of a number of cafes in the planned design and informatics innovation hub in the East City. Cafes and bars provide the meeting place of the new creative class developing in Cape Town. TOP Nelson Mandela delivers his first public speech in 27 years on the day of his release, City Hall, Grand Parade, Cape Town, February 11, 1990. Photo by Chris Ledochowski BOTTOM LEfT The struggle for rights continues in the new South Africa. Despite massive changes, there are still major challenges to be addressed: equal education, housing and massive unemployment are key issues. BOTTOM RIGHT Cape Town has a high population of young people, with more than half the population under the age of 30, and 27% under 14 (Census 2001). The role and involvement of young people in the city’s development is thus essential. Here youth commemorate the Soweto uprising during the World Cup.

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For decades the clothing and textile sector, with a base in the suburbs of Salt River and Woodstock, was a robust industry and a major contributor to the Cape Town economy. When this failed, the area degenerated. But, like many cities worldwide that have used design to revive locales, this precinct is experiencing a process of regeneration, led in large part by the presence of designers and design-related businesses. Furniture designers Pedersen+Lennard and Haldane Martin, lighting designers Heath Nash and Brett Murray, fashion design company Darkie Clothing all have studios here. The area has also witnessed a proliferation of art galleries, advertising agencies and design shops. In the old clothing and textile district, a cosmopolitan environment has arisen, where design and lifestyle are key elements of its character.Cape Town is a city with a cosmopolitan offering of art, culture, entertainment and leisure, adding another string to Cape Town’s marketing bow as a destination. Cape Town has also recently benefited from the beginnings of an Integrated Rapid Transport (IRT) system. A network of road, rail, pedestrian walkways and bicycle paths, it has the potential of connecting people and giving them greater access to different areas, resources and opportunities. Through the application of design, the IRT could potentially unleash sustainable, economic development and densification in the nodes surrounding stations. Beyond the central city, there have been other initiatives that reflect Cape Town’s commitment to addressing the fragmentation of its layout. The municipality’s Dignified Places Programme is one example and aims to create positive, inspiring, safe spaces in the most under-resourced areas of the city for people to meet, trade and relax.

Woodstock and Salt River were once at the centre of the (now ailing) textile industry.Photos by Yasser Booley. Today it is the studio and manufacturing spaces of furniture designers like Pedersen and Lennard, fashion designers like Darkie and design stores and galleries like Art South Africa and Blank Projects.

The Dignified Spaces programme of the City of Cape Town has created new public spaces in previously under-resourced suburbs (townships) around the city including developments around transit malls, government services buildings and in a number of instances commemorating important historical moments in these areas. Service Centres and Pay Points in Khayelitsha, (2002), by Piet Louw Architects, are part of the dignified spaces programme.

01/RECONNECTING THE CITY

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01/WHY IS CAPE TOWN BIDDING?Cape Town needs to get better at communicating its design assets and achievements and sharing its design know-how so that best practices can be replicated. Bidding for World Design Capital can help it communicate design innovations.Cape Town already has an extensive range of great designers and design assets (product and graphic designs, film and television animation, advertisements, furniture, jewellery, ceramics, fabrics and clothing). The city also has a calendar of major events such as Design Indaba, the Cape Town International Jazz Festival and the Loeries, an annual award scheme for the advertising industry. A number of winners of international design competitions are from Cape Town. Organisations like Cape Craft and Design Institute (CCDI) and Bandwidth Barn, and programmes like Creative Cape Town are committed to design thinking that unlocks potential.World Design Capital will provide the city with the opportunity to showcase its design assets and design savvy to the world.Most importantly, the award can assist Cape Town in getting design into the public domain, and in mobilising the city around using design for social change.

THIS PAGE Cape Town is a premier events destination. Some of the highlights in the last year include The Spier Contemporary 2010, Design Indaba, The Cape Creative Exhibition with Fringe Arts, Cape Town International Jazz Festival, Switching on of the City Lights and The Loerie Awards. Photos: Anita van Zyl, Jacques Marais, Shaen Adey fAcING PAGE TOP LEfT A CCDI City Sculpture piece. Photo Anthea Davison. TOP RIGHT Products from the Fringe Arts pop-up shop. MIDDLE LEfT Anatomy Design stand, Design Indaba. MIDDLE RIGHT Cape Town is a hub for music and the performing arts. Die Antwoord is a new international music sensation from the city. BOTTOM LEfT AND RIGHT The District Six Museum’s Offside exhibition dealt with racism in soccer.

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01/ABOUT DESIGNUnfortunately, locally, design has come to be associated almost exclusively with its aesthetic qualities and is often equated with elitist, consumerist and expensive, irrelevant things. Instead, it should be understood in terms of its solution-finding, problem-solving, transformative potential, and therein lies the heart of Cape Town’s bid. In an emerging society like ours, this potential is critical. Design understanding and skills can help Cape Town to address challenges created by its past and enhance the standard of living for everyone into the future.Design begins with a problem, the interrogation and understanding of this problem, and then proceeds to the development of ideas and processes, as well as evaluation of these, with a view to solving the problem. Take for example some design innovations in the health sector.In South Africa, where cervical cancer is responsible for 25% of cancer deaths among black South African women, Pap smears are expensive. There is also no public Pap smear programme. Professor Lynn Denny, head of the Gynaecological Oncology unit at the University of Cape Town, has designed a cheap, low-tech alternative used to screen for cervical cancer at clinics in under-resourced communities. Nurses use acetic acid swabs, which cause abnormalities in the cervix to show up white, and abnormalities are then treated by freezing them with liquid nitrogen. The alternative is no treatment at all. With a vaccine still several years away, this method saves lives.Another example that draws from knowhow developed in under-resourced communities derives from the high incidence of diseases like TB and HIV in these neighbourhoods. The IT department in CPUT’s Faculty of Informatics and Design has been working with community- and home-based health carers to develop a programme of support for health care workers. Using cell phone technology, the students have developed and tested a programme that helps health practitioners to access support and information to assist them in their work.There is a lesson in this for all forward thinking Capetonians interested in living in a better-designed future. Design is not necessarily an activity confined to the “lifestyle design” disciplines. It is about more than sleek, tactile home products or cleverly conceived buildings. Design is fundamentally about identifying the most effective, efficient, appropriate, and broadly applicable solutions, whether they are products, systems or services. The message is simple: a commitment to design, and design knowledge and training, which the award of World Design Capital offers, will benefit us all.

Lorelle Bell is the World Design capital coordinator at cape Town Partnership

fAcING PAGE A street art project by acclaimed artist Faith47 talks to the extreme imbalances in the contemporary South Africa by evoking the Freedom Charter, a publicly developed manifesto from 1955, against the backdrop of poverty. Photo by Rowan Pybus.BELOW Cape Town’s World Design Capital bid could help the city fast track some of its many forward thinking projects, including the proposed eco-village for Oudemoelen, the innovation hub planned in the East City, the Bellville Science Park, or the cruise liner terminal in the harbour.

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What’s reallygoing on

Earlier this year, bookshops around the country started displaying a bright yellow hardcover book. To read its title, you had to tilt your head sideways. Counter-Currents, declared the book’s shocking pink lettering.The first major book to emerge from the African Centre for Cities (ACC), a newly formed inter-disciplinary research centre based at the University of Cape Town and focused on the discipline of urban development, Counter-Currents was conceived by its editor, Edgar Pieterse, as an experimental “catalogue of ideas”. It also treated Cape Town as a laboratory for new thinking about African urbanism and showcased a range of “policies, dreams, ambitions, critiques, philosophies and learning”.The book’s deductive mode of reasoning makes for engaging reading. More than this, it also offers a useful insight into its editor. A committed urbanist, Pieterse, who took up office at the ACC in August 2007, is a prolific author and agile thinker with wide-ranging appetites. A warm conversationalist, when his busy schedule allows for a meeting, his research interests include fashioning an appropriate language to think and speak about the specifics of African urbanism; regional development policy; and, somewhat uniquely for a scholar, the visual representations of African cities. More plainly put, one could say that Pieterse is critically engaged thinker actively re-imagining Cape Town.Criticism is an important part of his method. Despite its sexy packaging, Counter-Currents doesn’t shy away from highlighting some of the key dilemmas facing contemporary Cape Town. “The City of Cape Town is heading for disaster and is already in deep crisis if one cares to look close enough,” offers Pieterse in his introduction. “It is manifested most starkly in the dire situation that faces the majority of

the city’s residents, who are excluded from the formal economy and must rely on substandard public services and their own makeshift shelters.”Make no mistake, Pieterse, a former policy advisor in the Office of the Premier of the Western Cape (2004-07) and currently the holder of the NRF South African Research Chair in Urban Policy, is no Afro-pessimist. If anything, he is a philosophical pragmatist with a deep-seated interest in understanding the mechanics of Cape Town and its relationship to other African cities. Unafraid of theory, he is nonetheless motivated to produce scholarship that will bring about “meaningful policy discourses and interventions”. Justice, openness and accessibility are central to his vision of a future Cape Town. “It is a myth to think you can innovate in a technical urban development field in Africa without a direct engagement with the people who are meant to benefit from it,” he told architect Kerwin Datu in March. Pieterse, who holds a PhD in Urban Studies from London School of Economics, was in Rio de Janeiro at the time. (He moderated a session at the World Urban Forum.)“If we can get a fine-grained understanding of how people in real terms in actual places navigate and practice the city in usually contradictory ways,” this action-orientated thinker stated, “then we can begin to produce a new language, necessarily theoretical, which can get us closer to understanding what is really going on.” It is this sort of deep looking that makes Pieterse and the ACC such a vital contributor to the ongoing debate around Cape Town’s long-term growth as a city founded on sustainable thinking and action.

Is Cape Town adapted to be a dynamic future-orientated city? Sean O’Toole explains why Edgar Pieterse might justknow the answer

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fAcING PAGE Leisure Time: a billboard in Langa by artist Donovan Ward for the public art project, Returning the Gaze (2000). Photo: Nic Aldridge

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“Sustainability needs to be firmly grounded in the nitty-gritty details of design,” writes the pioneering eco-architect Sim van der Ryn in his 1996 book, Ecological Design. Van der Ryn’s thinking, which places design at the centre of sustainability debates, struck a chord with Mark Swilling when he first encountered it.Speaking at a symposium to discuss the East City Design Initiative in May, Swilling, a professor and division head in sustainable development at the School of Public Management and Planning at the University of Stellenbosch, reiterated Van der Ryn’s arguments for the benefit of his audience.“He has a very significant statement in the introduction to the book,” offered Swilling. “Paraphrased: the crisis of sustainability is actually a design crisis. Why this word design is so central, not just to dealing with the challenge of sustainability, but to sustainable development in general, is that it marks out a space that is often ignored. We tend to blame our problems on development, on inequality, on history, but we forget that we do have choices about the future, and those choices lie in design.”Central to Swilling’s arguments, which view the challenges facing Cape Town in global macro-economic terms, is the thought that we are faced with the need to re-imagine the world in which we live in very fundamental ways. “This reimagining,” he said, “which is already taking place, is resulting in fundamental redirections in massive investment flows, public and private, around the world, leading to a reconfiguration of cities as we know and understand them.”Swilling, who completed his Ph.D. at the University of Warwick where he is a senior research fellow, argues that Cape Town, particularly, is faced with a historic mission. How so?“Cape Town has an interesting economy if you look at it closely,” he stated. “It is quite different from many of the city economies in South Africa and Africa. It sits inside a

provincial context that is overwhelmingly urbanised.” Unlike other provinces, the Western Cape is also not heavily reliant on resource extraction and its capital, Cape Town, has an economy that is an agglomeration of small and medium enterprises. While unemployment is lower in Cape Town than elsewhere, literacy rates and per capita internet penetration are higher. Cape Town also has the highest rate of basic service connections in country. “You have quite an interesting possibility,” said Swilling. “It is an interesting space to think of making design innovation central to our focus.”After briefly reviewing initiatives like ECDI and discussing the provincial government’s willingness to be “a game changer” in the field of innovation, he concluded that Cape Town was confronted with the need for higher levels of collaboration. “Are we up to that?” he wondered. All the indicators suggest yes.

Reimaginingthe futureWe tend to blame our problems on development, inequality and history, argues Mark Swilling, but we forget that we have choices about the future.By Sean O’Toole

fAcING PAGE TOP Blue Line, by Strijdom van der Merwe and AAW Art Project Management, is a proposed land art project for Cape Town to mark the extent of the city which would be under water should the sea levels rise with global warming fAcING PAGE BOTTOM The Reclaim Camissa initiative seeks to revive the city’s damaged ecosystem and its associated cultural connections. It plans to raise above ground the tributaries from Table Mountain, which have been sunken in underground tunnels and through which vast quantities of scarce fresh water are lost into the sea.

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Where is the future of design internationally?

The global trends point towards more engaged and empathic expressions of design. Previously, society tended to view designers as being elitist in nature. In many such instances, designers were indeed part of the problem, so to speak, as their practice was detached from the day-to-day socio-economic and geopolitical realities that the vast majority of people related to. Current trends point towards socially responsible design, wherein a co-design approach (between designers and potential end-users) is adopted as a more pragmatic stance in matters affecting the majority of humanity (or the “other 90%”, as some have called this segment of our population). Socially responsible design is also viewed as a more contemporary attempt to operationalise and compliment corporate social responsibility (and investment) initiatives as they relate to commerce and industry.

Tell us more about service design.

Service design is an emerging field that seeks to improve the user experience in the use and delivery of services within the traditional product-service system (PSS) model. The reality is that the focus is less on products as tangible outputs of the design process, and more on the non-tangible notions such as user-satisfaction and enjoyment resulting from interaction between key elements within the PSS domain. Service design is particularly relevant to the need for enhancing service delivery by various agencies and engenders a multi-disciplinary set of actors including those from the fields of planning, information technology and traditional design disciplines.

What should be the role of designers in Africa in the face of challenges such as poverty, unemployment and infrastructural deficits?

With a population of about 900 million, Africa is a vast territory that is second only to Asia in both geographic and population size, with about three times the landmass of Europe. Designers on our continent need to focus on the needs of a predominantly youthful population with exceptionally high unemployment rates and other pressing challenges associated with this reality. Context-responsive solutions should preferably absorb the surplus labour available and employ participatory design approaches that take cognisance of the aspirations of the youth. One cannot be prescriptive in any sense, as the process of engagement will reveal the priority areas (such as job creation, vocational up-skilling and microfinance support). Sustainable strategies would of necessity engage with the youth and support their participation in matters affecting their lives. Proactive and progressive designers on our continent need to observe and listen to those who experience the challenges on a regular basis – only then can any forthcoming solutions be truly sustainable and beneficial to the continent’s denizens.

The continental context

Given what you’ve said, are there any designers making a difference in cape Town?

There are many examples of designers (an inclusive definition that incorporates various creative disciplines) active in socially responsible design initiatives and activities and thus making a difference. These include fashion and surface designers working with inmates, the elderly and people living with HIV/AIDS; product designers helping equip artisans for informal furniture production; graphic designers lending their talents to socially conscious campaigns; architects co-designing affordable dignifying dwellings; as well as information technology practitioners helping in the rehabilitation of former gangsters, drug addicts and other members of communities in tension. These kinds of activities best illustrate the power of design thinking in diverse settings. My hope is that the World Design Capital 2014 bid process will help Cape Town showcase these and other promising examples of what design could do for our city given the right support, exposure and investment in social capital. We need to tap into Cape Town’s latent creative spirit to fuel the city’s collective vision for a truly sustainable future.

Mugendi M’Ritha is a senior lecturer in the Department of Industrial Design, faculty of Informatics & Design, cape Peninsula University of Technology and a member of the World Design capital Bid committee

Africa, with its large and youthful population, is a potential hotbed of socially responsible design, says Mugendi M’Rithaa

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fAcING PAGE The Violence Prevention through Urban Upgrading (VPUU) is a community participation planning model using urban upgrades to reduce crime and engage communities in developing neighbourhood cohesion. It has seen significant successes in Khayelitsha. TOP LEfT AND RIGHT Dibanisa Iistapho Hostels to Home Project: Langa, Guguletu, Nyanga by Architects Associated BOTTOM Tsai Design Studio’s award winning Nested Bed Bunk is a space conscious design solution aimed at low income families and orphanages. Photo: Guto Bussab

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SociallyconsciousdesignCape Town architects are setting new standards for people centred design and environmentally responsible architecture

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THIS PAGE Makeka Design Studios design for the Retreat Railway Police Station breaks from the traditional design of police stations, creating something dignified and beautiful.

fAcING PAGE The Fugard Theatre is part of the District Six Museum’s Sacks Futeran Complex /Homecoming Centre, a redevelopment designed by Rennie Scurr and Adendorf Architects. Five heritage warehouse spaces and a church have been transformed into a mixed use development including the theatre, rehearsal space, exhibition spaces, shop, cafe and offices. Photo: Timmy Henny

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TOP LEfT The SA BP Head Office building by KrugerRoos, Joshua Conrad Architects and Green by Design, exemplifies environmentally responsible architecture in Cape Town.TOP RIGHT AND BELLOW Inkwenkwezi Secondary School by Noero Wolff Architects in association with Sonja Spamer Architect. Photos by Dave Southwood

05/SOCIALLY CONSCIOUS DESIGN

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The 2010 FIFA World Cup has left South Africans with two types of legacies: physical and attitudinal.On the physical side, Cape Town has gained R14 billion of infrastructure, mainly relating to improved transport systems. This includes the upgrade of the airport, railway stations and highway intersections. In particular, we have been able to fast-track the implementation of an Integrated Rapid Transit System (IRTS), or MyCiTi. The IRTS is a twenty-year programme to bring reliable public transport within reach of all communities in Cape Town, to improve access and mobility.The expansion of the IRTS, and parallel improvements to the existing commuter rail system, carries with it the potential of transit-led development. In future, if public authorities can better align public transport routes with human settlements planning (in particular, well-located affordable housing) and more strategic land use management, there will be an opportunity to promote appropriate densification, more intensive economic development and a more compact city, which in turn will support more sustainable public transport systems. These issues will no doubt be debated in the City of Cape Town’s forthcoming City Development Strategy (CDS) process.The second World Cup legacy relates to changing perceptions and attitudes, both of locals and visitors. Some of the global stereotypes towards Africa have been challenged. More importantly, we have increased our local self belief – that we can think big, meet deadlines, and work together for a common purpose.When asked about their experience of Cape Town during the World Cup, many visitors responded that they enjoyed being able to walk the streets freely and explore the city. They also commented on the open welcome they received from Capetonians. It makes sense therefore to adjust our tourism marketing message, which for years has focused almost entirely on promoting our natural environment. Instead of the traditional focus on “escape from the city”, the new message needs to rather be, “engage with the city and its people”.Similarly, many locals experienced the World Cup on the streets of the central city – on the Fan Walk, in the FIFA Fan Fest on the Grand Parade, in upper Long Street and various other public spaces. Instead of driving to the stadium and trying to find parking, many spectators used public transport (and enjoyed it) and walked through the city at night (and enjoyed it).

Open access cityThe Integrated Rapid Transit System is an example of how good design thinking can help Cape Town address its developmental challenges, writes Andrew Boraine

06 fAcING PAGE TOP AND BOTTOM The fan walk to the Cape Town Stadium, along newly designed pedestrian routes, attracted hundreds of thousands of people during the 2010 World Cup atmosphere. THIS PAGE The My Citi Bus service is an ambitious project that will offer full service throughout the city by 2030. Photo: Jacques Marais

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The challenge now is to ensure that this exceptional experience becomes the norm. A truly liveable city is one where it is normal to walk (or cycle), to use public transport more than private motor vehicles, to be on the streets at night, to have safe spaces for families and teenagers. This implies, amongst other things, a greater focus in future on continuously promoting, developing, managing and maintaining public spaces and pedestrian routes in our city. In turn, this can reinforce our ability to increase the number of economic, sporting and business events in the city to support higher levels of socio-economic development.A city events strategy will work if it is based on local participation as well as enhancing the visitor experience and promoting the Cape Town brand. This can be done if future events are based more on park-and-ride schemes, public transport and the use of public spaces and walkways, and not just traffic services and parking arrangements for private cars.Cape Town’s central city itself has a specific role to play in a future city events strategy. With its various public venues (Cape Town International Convention Centre, Greenpoint Stadium, Artscape, City Hall, Good Hope Centre amongst them), public spaces (Green Point Urban Park, Grand Parade, Greenmarket Square, Artscape Piazza, Station Square, St Andrew’s Square and so on), easy access through pedestrian- and cycle-friendly routes and the proposed new MyCiTi inner city transport system, proximity to a range of types of accommodation and to retail and entertainment activity zones (including upper Long Street, Green Point’s Main Road, V&A Waterfront), the central city provides a natural arena to stage large events.

This can be easily and relatively inexpensively reinforced through an ongoing programme of “dressing the city” with murals, tree-wraps, flags and lights, creative use of outdoor advertising and more spaces for markets and public art.Good design can enhance many of the above strategies. Cape Town is bidding for the title of World Design Capital in 2014, not because we need more stuff (however well-designed) but because good design thinking can help us address many of the developmental challenges facing our city.

Andrew Boraine is chief Executive of cape Town Partnership

TOP LEfT Passengers on the The My Citi Bus service.fAcING PAGE TOP An initiative to introduce pedi-cabs into Cape Town has created new jobs and is part of the city’s aims to place greater emphasis on non-motorised transport and includes new bicycle lanes. TOP RIGHTAND fAcING PAGE BOTTOM The innovative decoration of public space during the World Cup set new standards for public art. fOLLOWING THREE PAGES Artworks for the Cape Town International Airport by artist Sue Williamson, at the Cape Town Stadium by Lovell Friedman and the main IRT terminus in the Heerengracht by Julia Anastasopoulos. Artworks curated by Roger Van Wyk and Lerato Berang for ARG Design.

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www. .co.zawww..co.za The

thingswe makeFrom carbon conscious electric cars to energy efficient low-income housing and desirable lighting, Cape Town’s creative economy is flourishing.

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Fifteen Capetonians, twenty products,one common vision:makeit good,reallygood.

Photographer Guto BussabDigital manipulation Muti FilmsArt direction Silke EckardStyling Silke Eckard and Leigh Bussabcasting My Friend NedWardrobe Annie’s wardrobe

“port jackson wood memory stick” by...xyz design

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coffee table and lampby ?

cushionsby skinnylaminx

“coloureds” comic bookby ?

model lauren @ my friend ned

“cloud bird” cushions by skinnylaminx

“coloureds” comic book

by trantraal brothers

lamp shadesby heath nash

“the plyable table”birch plywood table

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The cTIcc hosts some of South Africa’s top design events, including Design Indaba, cape Town fashion Week, Decorex, Southern Ink Exposure, the Green Buildings council’s annual convention. You also host cultural events like the cape Town Book fair, Good food and Wine Show and the cape Town International Jazz festival. Why do you think cape Town, in particular, has become the destination for events such as these?

What makes a city world class and at the edge of innovation is the percentage of creatives present in that city. I think Cape Town is definitely the epicentre of creativity in South Africa. The city boasts a diverse range of world-renowned design houses and is home to some of the leading design and architectural institutions like the University of Cape Town and the Cape Peninsula University of Technology. In addition, Cape Town is the preferred headquarters of established creative companies. These elements combined with the weather, vibe and eclectic mix of people all contribute to the cosmopolitan nature that is characteristic of Cape Town and to the city’s desirability as a creative destination.

Do you think there are still opportunities for more such fairs and conferences in cape Town, or have we reached saturation point?

We have definitely not reached saturation point. In the face of challenging economic conditions, now more than ever businesses need to demonstrate creativity in the way they operate. According to Martin Sirk, CEO of the International Congress and Convention Association, the new competency that is needed for businesses to survive is “deliverable creativity”. Deliverable creativity is taking creativity and turning it into innovation and implementing it throughout your business. Every single conference or show has the potential to be at the cutting edge of innovation and creativity. There is definite scope for conferences and events to use creativity to enhance their own events.

The cTIcc is undergoing a redesign and its new extension will be a green star rated green building. What prompted this decision? Did it cost significantly more?

As a convention centre whose ethos is centred on sustainability, reducing the carbon footprint of the centre is a strategic priority. CTICC has always seen itself as an industry leader in terms of sustainable innovations and our planned expansion will once again propel the centre to the forefront of innovation. The cost of the new expansion is not significantly higher and it’s a misconception that “going green” is more expensive. Over the long term the tangible benefits and economic spin off of the initial investment can be seen. The immediate intangible benefits like fresh air and natural lightning are all conducive to fostering an energetic, creative environment. The new expansion will be an ideal example of how sustainability and innovation can combine effortlessly.

You are supporting cape Town’s bid to become the World Design capital in 2014. Why is winning the bid important to cTIcc?

Winning the bid will be another feather in our cap and will further entrench Cape Town’s reputation as a leading globally competitive destination. The prestigious accolade of being voted the leading world design capital will take Cape Town to new heights. The global community will view Cape Town as a serious contender on par with some of the world’s leading cities. At an emotive level, having this kind of title – or even just bidding for it – further entrenches the notion that Cape Town has the creativity, innovation and expertise to run world class events. CTICC’s vision is to make Cape Town the best long haul international convention destination by 2020 and winning this bid will play a pivotal role in helping us achieve this vision.

Rashid Toefy is the chief Executive Officer of the cape Town International convention centre

Wherecreativetalent meetThe Cape Town International Convention Centre offers a platform for businesses to demonstrate creativity in the way they operate, says Rashid Toefy

The right place, anytimeWith our doors open 24/7, 365 days a year the CTICC is a place where opportunity never knocks. Instead, it roams freely. As a result the CTICC has become one of the Southern Hemisphere’s leading hosts. With our versatile venues, innovative services, picturesque setting and environmentally sustainable packages, we offer event co-ordinators and their delegates a successful and rewarding event every time.

www.cticc.co.za | Up to 10 000m2 of sub-divisible, column-free exhibition space | 2 large auditoria | A magnifi cent ballroom (2000m2)with majestic city views | 33 meeting and function rooms | A roof-top terrace | 2 exquisite restaurants | 1 400 secure parking bays

Cape Town International Convention Centre

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Rashid Lombard is a man of two distinct, but related passions: jazz and photography. Before he became the face of jazz on the Cape peninsula, Lombard, CEO of the company that hosts the highly successful Cape Town International Jazz Festival, the fourth largest festival of its kind in the world, was a photographer.“I started out as a photojournalist working in places like the Congo and Namibia,” he says. “I’ve always had small portable speakers – I converted a lot of hacks to jazz.”Years later, he remains a committed advocate of jazz, arguably the twentieth century’s most innovative, influential and democratic music form. Lombard is in Angola when I telephone him. He is assisting with the launch of the debut Luanda International Jazz Festival. Having established a reputation hosting a genuinely African music festival in Cape Town, he was recently asked to export his knowhow to Angola.His current status as “Mister Fixit” belies the idiosyncratic origins of the jazz festival, which is now an established annual event drawing committed international jazz fans to Cape Town. In the late 1990s, while still working as a journalist, Lombard attended the North Sea Jazz Festival in Holland. “I went up to director, Theo van den Hoek, introduced myself, had a long conversation with him, then floated idea to establish a festival here.”“Send me a fax,” replied Van den Hoek.Back in Cape Town, Lombard did one better: “I sent him a flight and hotel, and had him over for a week.” Soon afterwards Capetonians were tapping their toes and bobbing their heads to jazz – African jazz. The festival, which has hosted Miriam Makeba, Youssou N’dour and Hugh Masekela, has a 50/50 talent split between Africa and the rest of the world.I ask Lombard how he thinks the jazz festival he dreamed into being has contributed to defining Cape Town as a cultural hub?“Firstly,” he responds, “Cape Town’s always been known

as the jazz capital. If you look back to the 1960s, Cape Town had a more liberal approach to live performance by people of colour. People came down from Joburg to play. It always had the most clubs catering for live music. From an artistic and creative point, it was obvious that we establish it in Cape Town.”Cape Town also has the will and the infrastructure, he adds. “Look at Design Indaba, the Cape Argus Cycle Tour, the Two Oceans Marathon: Cape Town sustains these events because of its infrastructure and the co-operation of government.”The benefits to the national coffers are also substantial. At a 2007 parliamentary briefing, it was revealed that the festival contributed R342.4 million to the national Gross Domestic Product and R136.96 million to the GDP of the City of Cape Town. In 2009 the event contributed R800 million to the GDP. “The festival has gone beyond being a music festival,” says Lombard. “It is now a lifestyle event involving crafters, restaurateurs, even a fashion element. We also actively involve the youth and host writing workshops. Recently we’ve been asking ourselves how we can bring film into it – films about music. I am amazed at how the festival has grown.”

Home iswhere themusic isThe Cape Town Jazz Festival has rapidly become a Cape Town institution. Sean O’Toole chats with its enterprising founder, Rashid Lombard

09Winston Mankunku Ngozi

(1944-2009)

Robbie Jansen(1949-2010)

Ezra Ngcukana(1954-2010)

Alex van Heerden(1974-2009)

In memory of four Cape Jazz legends who have passed on

fAcING PAGE Robbie Jansen in a live performance. Photo courtesy of Steve Gordon

1/2District 6 Museum

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THE CAPE GALLERY

The Cape Gallery, 60 Church Street, Cape Town seeks to expose Fine Art that is rooted in theAfrican Tradition, Rotating exhibitions add to the diverse and often eclectic mix of work on show.

American Express, Mastercard, Visa and Diner cards are accepted. Reliable arrangements can be made to freight purchases to foreign destinations.

Featured above is work by South African born artist Sandy Esau

Mon-Fri: 09h30-17h00 Sat: 10h00-14h00Tel: +27 21 423 5309 Fax: +27 21 424 9063 E: [email protected] W: www.capegallery.co.za

7102 CG AD Creative Cape Town.indd 1 7/21/10 12:48:16 PM

Outside poster.indd 1 6/10/10 8:44:57 AM

ONE SMALL SEED MAGAZINEA quarterly publication that has been sowing seeds since 2005, one small seed provides an illuminating insight into its contemporary arts and popular culture, making it the leading publication of its kind. Printed in South Africa, the magazine is now available for sale internationally.www.onesmallseed.com

ONE SMALL SEED NETWORKthe one small seed network is as an online creative networking platform where likeminded individuals across the globe can interact.www.onesmallseed.net

PICTURE THISPicture This is a stunning online photography magazine that showcases the best photography submitted by one small seed network members.www.onesmallseed.net

ONE SMALL SEED TVonesmallseed.tv is an online video platform that brings to life the creative content in one small seed magazine.www.onesmallseed.tv

THE SOUTH AFRICAN POP CULTURE EXPERIENCE

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Creative Central

The eastern part of Cape Town’s central city, from Buitenkant Street to Harrington Street, is now considered a research, innovation and services hub for the design media and ICT (information and communication technology) sectors. Known as the East City Design Initiative (ECDI), it is recognised as one of the Western Cape provincial government’s catalyst projects and is viewed as a key infrastructure-led economic driver. Hubs such as these are dependent on proximity and involvement of the academy. The Cape Peninsula University of Technology’s Faculty of Informatics and Design is adjacent to the area and a key partner in the ECDI. The ECDI area has rapidly become a happening environment for creative innovation and entrepreneurship development. Besides the Cape Craft and Design Institute, Cape Town Fashion Council and Open Innovation Studio, by next year, the Bandwidth Barn and Cape IT Initiative will also have a presence in the East City, in the Old Granary. In the last year, Creative Cape Town, as project leader on ECDI, has been active in engaging stakeholders such as government, academia, the design, media and ICT sectors as well as those currently based in the East City. It has been developing a spatial development framework, formulating a research agenda and an institutional vehicle, and establishing a brand, which will be unveiled in 2011.Conceptually, the spatial plan for the project connects the innovation precinct with a pedestrian network along Longmarket Street, where the City Hall, Central Library, College of Cape Town, Granary buildings, District Six Museum and Fugard Theatre are brought into conversation with each other, with further links to Cape Town’s central city, Cape Peninsula University of Technology and District Six. In addition, a further spine, from the Grand Parade and Cape Town Station past the Castle to Good Hope, creates the potential to extend the World Cup fan walk from the Green Point Urban Park and Greenpoint Stadium all the way to the East City, District Six and Woodstock. The research hub component is a quieter area centred on Harrington Square and runs along Harrington Street.

Cape Town’s East City neighbourhood is the hip home to the city’s many talented designers, savvy media professionals and gee-whiz ICT entrepreneurs

fAcING PAGE TOP cORNER A conceptual spatial plan for the development of the East City as an innovation hub for design and informatics. fAcING PAGE AND THIS PAGE Some of the many existing institutions, agencies and eateries in the East City. The Good Hope Art Studios in the Castle; Charley’s Bakery; Open Innovation Studios; Furnspace; Dicky’s Tailors; students of the Advertising College Cape Town. All photos by Sydelle Willow Smith

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What is the cape craft & Design Institute?

We’re a facilitating institution established by the provincial government to develop the sustainability of the craft and design sector. We’re in our tenth year and have been on a steep learning and growth curve – alongside the sector itself. We provide support to over 1500 creative enterprises on our database, through our three core programmes: enterprise development and training; market access; and creativity, design and innovation. We also reach out into rural areas and spend a great deal of energy on promoting the sector through our Handmade Cape brand, to increase consumer awareness and the love of the local.

What has been the key success of the ccDI in the last year?

Without a doubt our visual awareness and creativity workshops which are aimed at stimulating and developing craft producers’ appreciation for visual triggers in their environment, and building knowledge not just skill. It includes an ongoing series of monthly lectures by creative professionals, who share their creative processes and ways of working. We’ve hosted photographer Yasser Booley, artists Paul Edmunds, Nandipha Mntambo, Brett Murray and Roderick Sauls, and creative composer Jannes Hendricks (of the Blackheart Gang). The workshops incorporate a range of practices aimed at expanding individual creativity to stimulate the possibility of new products and/or processes. The workshop process itself is designed to challenge participants’ pre-existing ways of engaging with their materials, products and environment so as to generate new and interesting creative solutions. This exciting approach is far removed from an interventionist,

product development approach as the process aims to develop participants’ interpretive and conceptual skills. The immediate results are amazing – but the true test will be in the longer-term.

What is the role of the fabLab?

The Fabrication Laboratory (or FabLab) is a high tech facility using open-source design software linked to digital desktop manufacturing technology. It promotes creative experimentation and enables prototyping. It has added huge value to the sector and is a very popular facility. But it has its limitations, specifically related to constraints on prototyping determined by the types of equipment available. We would like users to engage more critically with the available technology and also to find ways of engaging with the relationships between ‘new’ and ‘old’ technology. This year we’ll be expanding our functionality so that people will ultimately be able to work, through an assisted DIY process, from idea to a prototype, using a wider range of equipment and technology.

How does ccDI feel about the proposed design precinct in the East city?

We’re great fans! We moved to the East City in 2006 because of ideas on the table then about focusing it as a creative district. Now there is a significant, near-critical mass, of businesses and organisations in the area to root the precinct. The CT Partnership has been working hard at getting key institutions behind it – now we just need a few catalytic projects to make it possible for great things to happen so our creative sectors can gain competitive advantages for the future.

Erica Elk is Executive Director of the cape craft & Design Institute

Inspiringinnovation People

make aCityDesign transformed our environment for 32 days during the World Cup –we can do it everyday... The CCDI is growing the cultural resources of the City, person by person. Our vision is of creative, confident people making beautiful and functional Handmade objects for city spaces, city events, city markets, city homes…local and global.

Cape Craft & Design Institute75 Harrington Street, East City Cape Town021 4611 488 | [email protected]

The aim of the Cape Craft & Design Institute is to raise design awareness and the love of the local, says Erica Elk

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What is cITi and what is its role in cape Town?

The Cape Information Technology Initiative (CITi) is a non-profit organization established in 1998 to develop and support an information technology cluster in the Western Cape, including Cape Town. Our mission is to stimulate the growth of employment and prosperity. We achieve this goal primarily by initiating and “unblocking”. One of our key roles is to bring industry, government and academia together, either among or between themselves, to solve specific issues. The value of this work is usually not recognised because it is not newsworthy. However, it does result in more cooperation, better integration between initiatives and less duplication of effort. Cape Town has a strong community of highly networked, talented IT entrepreneurs because of our efforts over the last 12 years.

What have been your successes?

A key early success of CITi was the creation, in 2000, of the Bandwidth Barn (BWB), a business incubator that focuses on fast-tracking the pace of business growth in the IT sector by helping small, medium and micro enterprises (or SMMEs) to establish themselves, commercialise new products and services, create jobs and wealth and add economic diversity to the community. The BWB runs focused, intensive and selective support programmes for entrepreneurs and start-ups in the IT sector in the Western Cape. A large number of successful Cape IT entrepreneurs have either been incubated in the BWB or benefited from its programmes. They include Vinny Lingham (Yola), Piet Streicher (BulkSMS), Matthew Tagg (WebAfrica), Sheraan Amod (Personera), Marc Antony Zimmerman (The Broccoli Project), Henk Kleynhans (Skyrove), Mustapha Baboo (Maxxor), Shana Kassiem

(Infointeg), and many others. This year CITi also launched the IT Heroes and Pioneers portal and campaign to recognise our regional talent and highlight the fact that the Western Cape is full of talented techpreneurs creating high quality software and services. This is part of a bigger project to attract software development and research centres to the region.

Why has cITi been so supportive of linkages between IcT and design?

Cape Town is a creative city with huge design strength. What many people don’t know is that our software engineers and developers are also creative. We design and write bold, innovative, “out of the box” software. We believe that bringing our filmmakers, storytellers and designers together with our software professionals will lead to the creation of high-growth businesses with the potential for international expansion. This is the reason why we will be establishing a new IT and Design incubator in the East City design district in early 2011. This will involve refurbishing the Old Granary building to create an amazing space for designers and techies to share ideas and co-create products and services.

Jenny Mckinnell is Executive Director of the cape IT Initiative (cITi)

Networked intelligenceBecause of some clever, behind the scenes organising, Cape Town has a strong community of highly networked, talented IT entrepreneurs, saysJenny McKinnell

fAcING PAGE The Granary: A mixed use hub for the creative industries, currently in development and project managed by the Cape Town Heritage Trust.

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Why did Loeries choose cape Townas host city?

The role of The Loerie Awards (or Loeries) is to recognise, reward and foster creative excellence. Over time, the awards ceremony has come to represent the pinnacle on the advertising and communication industry’s calendar. The awards represent a time for the industry to get together and celebrate the year’s achievements – the best of what our region has to offer. In the past the awards have been held in the Carlton Centre (a long, long time ago), Sun City and Margate. In 2009, the awards moved to Cape Town, the first time in 32 years. And it has been a well-chosen move as Cape Town offers the ideal environment to foster a bit of creativity – beaches, a little mountain and laid-back people. Why the Good Hope centre of all places for the awards weekend?

When we moved to Margate, everyone asked, “Why Margate?” And when we moved to Cape Town everyone asked, “Why the Good Hope Centre?” Our role is to promote creative thinking, to recognise and reward thinking differently. The Good Hope Centre is a beautiful

structure. Designed by Pier Luigi Nervi, a pioneer in the use of concrete, and built in 1976, it is now an almost forgotten and downtrodden piece of Cape Town’s inner-city landscape – and the ideal platform for the Loeries to “do things differently”. We hope that by hosting the Loeries here it will bring new life to this grande dame.

What are some of Loeries’ legaciesfor cape Town?

In 2009, R6,7 million was spent on production, including R409,000 using Cape Town artists. Upgrades were made at the Good Hope Centre; Long Street and the inner city of Cape Town were extensively promoted; and all surplus production materials were donated to local charities. Additionally, we ran a carbon-offsetting programme in partnership with Hetzner resulting in 250 trees being planted in the severely impoverished region of Delft. In 2010, we are working with our Cape Town partners to launch Creative Week Cape Town, something we hope will position Long Street as the creative capital of South Africa and showcase local creative talent. Creative Week Cape Town will culminate in the Loeries Festival Weekend (October 1 – 3).

Andrew Human is chief Executive Officer of The Loerie Awards

GoldRewardThe 32nd annual Loerie Awards takes place in Cape Town in October. Andrew Human reveals more

TOP LEfT Comedian Mark Lottering and radio and television personality Natalie Becker present the Loerie Awards. TOP MIDDLE Music duo, Goldfish performed at the awards ceremony. TOP RIGHT Creative Cape Town commissioned Word of Art to produce a series of characters (“Ego’s”) for shopfronts on Long Street as part of a Loeries window dressing project (2009). Photos: Anita van Zyl

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We’ve built the airports. We’ve cleaned the roads. We’ve trained the police. And fi nally the time has come, to welcome the world to the biggest event of the year: The 2010 Loerie Awards.

FESTIVAL WEEKEND 1–3 OCTOBER www.theloerieawards.co.za

CREATIVE WEEK CAPE TOWN 24 SEPTEMBER–3 OCTOBER www.creativeweekct.co.za

32136 Loeries Annual Print Ad_170x210.indd 1 2010/09/09 8:59 AM

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ImagineCity Hall

The Cape Town City Hall was, for a long time, established in the minds of most Cape Town citizens as a cultural venue – concert hall aside, it was home to the Central Library from 1979. Then last year the library moved to its slick new space in the Drill Hall, next to the City Hall, leaving more than 2,000 sq metres of unoccupied space in its old premises. This, and the City Hall’s slide into decline since the late 1980s, has provided an opportunity to re-imagine and re-position this strategic venue.

In the past, various initiatives were mooted to turn the City Hall into a viable cultural facility – none of them however came to fruition. More recently, the Cape Town Partnership has made significant interventions, including lobbying government, funding research, developing a business plan and funding proposals, and proposing relevant agencies and systems for the management and redevelopment of the space.

The Africa Centre’s successful and dynamic renovation and use of the City Hall for the Spier Contemporary, a major South African contemporary art exhibition held from March to May this year, created the impetus for the space to be repositioned for public use. For two months the City Hall was turned into a beautiful environment with more than 20,000 people visiting the exhibition, attending workshops, watching performances and music, shopping at the Fringe Arts pop-up design shop or simply hanging out at the classy cafe in the innovatively remade space.

The opportunity arose to reinvigorate the project of reimagining the City Hall with citizen engagement using Facebook and via a letter writing campaign. To that end Imagine City Hall was born as an idea between the Africa Centre, Creative Cape Town and Cape MIC, whose key aim

was to garner support for the City Hall as a dedicated and premier cultural venue for all Capetonians.The city government’s decision to use the venue for the World Cup as a media centre, while placing the outside of the venue iconically against Table Mountain for the FIFA Fan Fest on the Grand Parade, sadly did nothing for the project of reinventing the space as a long term cultural venue. It is again up to the cultural sector to advocate for a more innovative, sustainable long term solution that does not sell the venue out to corporate interests alone or see its reduced to a poorly run municipal facility designated for ad hoc use.

Join the Imagine city Hall facebook group or find out more at www.creativecapetown.net

Earlier this year the City Hall had an inspiring makeover that suggested how this strategic venue could function as a vibrant cultural facility

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fAcING PAGE AND ABOvE Installation views of Spier Contemporaryat City Hall fAcING PAGE BOTTOM RIGHT The Fringe Arts pop-up store

The knockout magazine now also featuringextensive* design, architecture, film, music, fashion andcultural reviews

The knockoutmagazine now also featuringextensive* design, architecture, film, music, fashion andcultural reviews

* See our December issue for the launch of this new focus www.artsouthafrica.com

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CreativeLeadership

In July 2008, the SAE Institute, a private tertiary educator focussing on creative media, opened for business at its premises on the corner of Spin and Parliament streets in Cape Town. Founded in Sydney in 1976 by the engineer and producer Tom Misner, the School of Audio Engineering, as it was then known, comprises a worldwide network comprising 52 campuses in 23 countries. The new Cape Town school is SAE’s first campus on African soil. The decision to open in South Africa, in particular Cape Town, was premised on sound business fundamentals. According to a 2006 Harvard University study commissioned by the World Bank, South Africa has the highest tertiary education enrolment rate in Sub-Saharan Africa. Cape Town has long been home to a number of leading schools specialising in design and the creative arts, changes post-1994 helping to entrench Cape Town as the leading African city for higher learning in the design and creative arts fields.Located between Orange Street and the upper end of the Avenue, in the Company’s Gardens, the prestigious Michaelis School of Fine Art dates back to 1920. Offering a limited number of places annually, the school has produced many famous alumni, including the internationally renowned painter Marlene Dumas and photographers Gary Schneider and Mikhael Subotzky. Although 50 years younger than Michaelis, the Ruth Prowse School of Art, founded in 1970 by artist Erik Laubscher, is also recognised as a talent incubator. The

Paris-based performance artist Steven Cohen is a past graduate, as is sculptor Donovan Ward and photographer Jo Ractliffe. Unlike Michaelis, Ruth Prowse – named after a prominent Cape Town landscape painter – offers a wider range of courses, including three-year full-time courses in fine art, graphic design, photography and jewellery.Since the 1990s, when tertiary student enrolments spiked nationally, there has been a rapid proliferation in private educational institutions. In Cape Town, especially, there has been a flourishing of schools specialising in design and the creative arts. They include the AAA School of Advertising, City Varsity and BHC School of Design.Founded in 1996, City Varsity is now an entrenched feature of Kloof Street’s café culture and offers full-time courses in animation, film and television production, journalism, acting, sound engineering and motion picture production. Its photography department, headed by the documentary photographer Jenny Altschuler, is particularly noted. Based across town, in the up-and-coming Woodstock area, BHC (also founded in 1996) specialises in interior design. Interior architect Jurgen Schirmacher is a past graduate. He describes BHC as “professional and smart” – an experience he says wasn’t duplicated when he subsequently enrolled in an architecture degree at a prominent university.Like BHC, the Cape Peninsula University of Technology (CPUT), a new institution founded in 2005 in an

amalgamation of two old apartheid-era technical colleges, also offers courses in interior design. CPUT also directly competes with specialist private schools such as the AAA (founded in 1990) for graphic design enrolments. Similarly, City Varsity and the newly founded SAE both offer courses in audio production, computer-generated 3D graphics and animation and film production.Unavoidably, the achievements of past alumni now play as important a role in decision making by prospective students as fee structures and staff profiles. Mike Schalit, executive creative director and founding partner of the advertising agency Net#work BBDO is a graduate of AAA. Industrial designers Roelf Mulder and Byron Qually, both from the product design company XYZ, completed their studies in industrial design at CPUT. Twin brothers Hasan and Husain Jessop, whose photos form part of singer Elton John’s large-scale photography collection, are notable recent Michaelis graduates. Although a new kid on the block, SAE also offers the draw of a formidable alumni list. The Grammy Award-winning producer José “Hyde” Cotto is a past student, albeit in Miami. The achievements of AAA, CPUT, Michaelis and SAE students, amongst others, has made Cape Town an

attractive study destination. “Currently 50% of our students are non-South African and are primarily from Nigeria, Kenya and Zimbabwe,” says David Maclean, institute manager at SAE, flagging a phenomenon that is now becoming increasingly widespread in Cape Town. BHC, for example, has students from 16 African states, including Kenya and Nigeria, as well as German, Italian, Finnish and Columbian students. In their 2006 overview of South Africa’s educational system, Harvard researchers highlighted a growing demand for “better quality” and “more flexible market-oriented” tuition programmes in South Africa, “especially those designed for non-traditional students”. Cape Town is leading the way here. At issue though is more than just bragging rights. In their report the Harvard researchers noted African higher education has the potential to assist countries with technological catch-up and thus improve the potential for faster growth. Underscoring the importance of creative leadership in an African context, industrial designer and CPUT faculty member, Mugendi M’Rithaa, emphasises that creative mentoring enables “any person irrespective of their station in life to embrace the opportunities that life brings and to move in sync with everyone else to create a different and positive outcome”

Cape Town has emerged the leading African city for higher learning in the design and creative arts fields. Sean O’Toole profiles some of the leading schools

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fAcING PAGE AND TOP LEfT The BHC School of Design TOP RIGHT Cape Peninsula University of Technology BOTTOM LEfT The BHC School of DesignBOTTOM RIGHT Facade of Ruth Prowse School of Art

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Cape Town, which has always been at the forefront of driving issues around design policy, is developing a platform for the exchange of knowledge and experience of designers in the city, across all disciplines. It already enjoys a solid reputation as a desirable cultural and creative location, with a large number and range of highly rated, practicing designers and iconic events. With the formation of the Cape Town Design Network, meeting once a month, the inward focusing tendency of most design disciplines has started to change. Many of those who have participated have attested to the value of these events, not only in terms of being brought up to date on strategic creative projects in the city, but also the richness of the networking and cross-disciplinary opportunities provided. Networks help designers share experience and resources, promote their services more

effectively to businesses, act as social and professional hubs and communities, and give a more unified voice for lobbying local government on areas such as the economic role of design and its ability to improve the quality of life of all its citizens. With positive developments such as the East City Design Initiative and the proposed World Design Capital Bid for 2014, the voice of practicing designers can, through the network, help shape these events and processes so that they benefit both the profession and the broader community.

Mel Hagen is Programmes Manager at the cape craft & Design Institute

* The title was suggested by a statement by the Dutch Design Management Network

Knowledge shared is Knowledge Multiplied*Why do we need to find a common voice for design in Cape Town?Mel Hagen responds

The Creative Cape Town Clusters is a programme of inspiring talks and networking opportunities for creative practitioners. It involves regular forums and more intimate breakfast conversations. In 2010, recognising that Cape Town design practitioners had no cross cutting network serving its needs, the Clusters programme was used to helped birth the Cape Town Design Network. This is a loose emerging network of design professionals from across disciplines who will help set up a structure to promote and develop design in Cape Town. It will work closely with Cape Town’s World Design Capital bid team for 2014 and with the East City Design Initiative.

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Creative Cape Town Clusters events in 2009

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EXPERIENCE THE UNIQUE VIBE OF AFRICA’S CREATIVE CAPITAL

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