Interviews
Our creative spotlight (sponsored by Adobe, of course) falls on Durban designer, artist and allround nice guy Richard Hart.
Cameron Platter is a relatively young (read 32) artist who lives and works in Ballito, the little holiday town just north of Durban that is equal parts Bible belt and surfers' paradise. Platter has worked steadily at his art for over a decade and his dedication and effort are starting to pay big dividends.
I guess if you really take Jack Parow at his word, Erika Koutny must be part of the cool crowd. After all, she’s had work published in One Small Seed. Other things that likely qualify her as one of Cape Town’s new and influential young arrivistes is her association with the enterprising folk behind Woodstock’s Neighbourgoods Market, Whatiftheworld Gallery and recently opened Superette deli.
Over the last decade, and following in the wake of the massive uptake in contemporary art locally, South Africa has seen a boom in art book publishing. Often produced on miniscule budgets, in small print runs, and on pernicious deadlines, it is often the imprints (David Krut Publishing, Michael Stevenson, Bell-Roberts Publishing, Jacana, Fernwood) that enjoy prominence over the invisible but committed coterie of designers that give this field its unique identity.
Hideki Inaba, the self-taught Japanese graphic designer who amused audiences at the recent Design Indaba by pointing out the similarity between his name and that of the event, doesn’t think much of China. Asked what influence this new titan of global trade is having on the current form of Japanese design, he shrugged his shoulders. Much to the amusement of the translator, he also challenged the idea that his country’s complicated script even originated from China.
To celebrate our 40th issue, we posed forty creative questions to one creative dude. Given the long hours he puts in after hours, it is not at all surprising Dave Chong sees things other don’t in corporate logos. He’s a clean living kid with big dreams and an even bigger heart. A graphic designer with Johannesburg brand strategy and design firm HKLM, by night Dave Chong is a superhero of a different sort.


