As guest of ExperimentaDesign Lisbon, Design Indaba will be presenting a unique view of South African creativity in Portugal from 9 September to 8 November 2009.
ExperimentaDesign is an international biennale of design, architecture and contemporary culture held annually in Lisbon and Amsterdam, with different programmes. Comprising a month’s worth of exhibitions, urban interventions, debates and lectures, the theme for the 2009 Lisbon edition is “It’s about time”.
“As contemporary life accelerates non-stop, communication is real-time, decisions are split-second and problem solving relies on quick fixes rather than sustainable solutions. In a world on the brink of environmental and financial collapse, there is a pressing need to take action – but do we think before we act? It’s about time to concentrate on mature reflection and persistent change,” reads the biennale statement.
In answering this call, Design Indaba are presenting the creative case study of South Africa in both exhibition and debate format. As part of the Open Talk debates, running from 9 to 13 September, Design Indaba founder and host Ravi Naidoo will examine what the world can learn from South Africa’s 14-year revolution. He will be joined on the panel by designers Gaby de Abreu, Nathan Reddy and Nkhensani Nkosi.
As creative director of Switch, De Abreu is widely recognised for designing the logo for the forthcoming FIFA World Cup – the first time FIFA has allowed the host country to design their own logo. In turn, graphic design and branding specialist Reddy has been instrumental in the creative formation of our fledgling democracy through Grid Worldwide's work on popular brands such as Virgin Mobile and Axe, as well as the critically acclaimed Apartheid Museum. And who doesn’t know Nkosi’s Stoned Cherrie fashion label and her infamous Steve Biko T-shirts?
First presenting the case study of South Africa 2.0, Naidoo will then open the conversation to the floor and lead the discussion beyond “local” to engage with the emerging global challenges, including environmental, social and economic insecurity. “It’s time for World 2.0”, says Naidoo, defining the notion as “an over-arching movement to redesign the world form the bottom up”. Participate in creating the manifesto here: www.designindaba.com/twodotzero
The second platform where Design Indaba will be participating is in the Timeless exhibition running from 11 September to 8 November. A selection of work from the SOUTH exhibition, launched at Design Indaba Expo earlier this year, will represent a snapshot of South Africa’s evolving creativity since democracy in 1994.
Comprising legends and award finalists from the original SOUTH project, the selection contains examples of design brought about by South Africa’s unique society, and the varied challenges presented by socio-economic issues such as housing, HIV and access to water, where less is the reality and design can be used to create a better future. Visit the SOUTH homepage: www.designindaba.com/projects/south
