Bubblegum Club

Author: Christa Dee

  • Sula Collective: an online magazine for and by people of colour

    Co-founders of Sula Collective, Sophia Yuet and Kassandra Piñero joined forces after meeting online while working for another online publication. Both being art majors, photographers and writers, their creative endeavors were bound to conjoin. I interviewed Kassandra to find out more about Sula Collective.

    Tell our readers about the name “Sula Collective”. How did the idea for Sula Collective come about?

    I came up with the name while brainstorming ideas related to literary figures of color. I was a writing and literature major at the time so that was where my main source of inspiration for everything came from- me referring back to books. Toni Morrison is one of the greatest writers of our time so by searching for her I came across Sula and it was the perfect fit.

    What has been the reaction to Sula by those who contribute to it and those who engage with it online?

    People are extremely supportive! We haven’t really faced any backlash which we’re extremely grateful for. A lot of people are interested in contributing to both online and print issues, but the enthusiasm for print is a bit stronger which is understandable – there’s nothing like holding your work in your own two hands. But all around everyone is just happy to be receiving representation for once which is what we’re most proud of.

    Tell our readers about some of the offline developments that have taken place since you started in 2015.

    We’ve only hosted two events personally which were picnics in New York and London, but we’ve attended many zine and print fests since then. We have also hosted zine making workshops and the like. We’ll be getting more into offline engagement this year!

    Photography by Ihab Amari

    Tell our readers about why you feel creative mediums offer an opening to the sharing of hopes, frustrations and experiences for people of colour?

    I’ve been writing since I was a little kid and at one point considered stopping because I had never read any books about Puerto Ricans, and that was the only life I knew. Once I got older and realized I was represented in literature and art I became a more confident person and no longer hesitated in calling myself an artist. So when Sophia and I created Sula that was something we wanted to give back to our communities. Kids and adults shouldn’t have to go to specialized sections to read about our own people. Whiteness should not be the default and we wanted to be a part of that representation. The internet today is the main source of information for young kids just beginning to find themselves, and Sula is a place where these kids can see others who are of the same ethnicity or nationality creating all kinds of work. That’s an extremely important thing for them to have as they are coming into themselves as fully grown human beings. All too often we come from homes where emotions aren’t shared openly as is common among people of colour, so to give people a place to vent and explore themselves as artists is an important thing. We want all types of art to be represented among us and not just the kind your middle school art teacher tells you is important. We are open to all mediums.

    Tell our readers about the importance of people of colour establishing a relationship with the online on our own terms through platforms such as Sula Collective?

    The relationships we have all formed through Sula are some of the closest friends we have ever made! I’ve met some of my best friends through this magazine and am surrounded by so many people who support my art and have helped me become a more confident person. We can’t stress the importance of community enough. Life is a lot easier when you have the reassurance that comes with a community who endlessly loves and supports you.

    What is the vision you have for Sula?

    Sophia and I hope Sula can become something much bigger than it is now. We’d love to expand to helping our communities in ways more tangible than we are now by hosting events and workshops and other things. We don’t want to give away too much just yet! We love being a magazine and we love being so focused in the arts, but we want to help be part of the movement and we’re brainstorming ways to do so.

    What are you working on at the moment?

    We just released our Spring issue and our next online issue will be out June 1st! We should have a two year anniversary issue out in September and maybe a special event to go along with it so keep your eyes peeled.

    Photography by Pinky Ortiz
    Photography by Amarachi Nwosu

  • WOW_3000ZF: taking non-institutionalized transdisciplinary learning seriously

    As part of her two week residency with Floating Reverie, artist and writer Thulile Gamedze put together an interactive online “course” to think through South African education and art history. We had a conversation about why she considers herself an “education nerd” and the aims she had for the course.

    Reflecting on her undergraduate years at Michaelis School of Fine Art, Thulile expresses her gratitude at being able to study Fine Art as well as the guidance it offered in being able to read visuals. However, she also reflected on the discomfort she felt within the education space, particularly after she graduated and became part of the Rhodes Must Fall movement. With her interest in writing coinciding with her being part of student activism, Thulile was able to pin point the root of this discomfort within university spaces. She also realized that this can be translated to the art world as “all these institutions operate with similar power dynamics”. Mimicking the course codes used at UCT, the course WOW_3000ZF aims to think about the fact that many parts of our society that were once very political have now become de-politicized and commercialized.

    Thulile has a desire to invest in ways to produce knowledge that fall outside of traditional learning spaces, and the potential that these non-institutionalized spaces have for being able to learn about the real world. The second day of her course ties in with this desire, as she introduces followers to the definition of transdisciplinary learning. This was important for her to include because it articulates the way she enjoys learning and she feels that “when [learn about how] all these things overlap that is when we really understand the world that were are living in.”. Removing the idea that we should live and learn in silos is married with how she plays with internet education aesthetics. In the videos she has uploaded Thulile uses a computer voice to deliver the information she wishes to share and questions she asks. This fits in with her exploring different ways of producing knowledge, as well as plays with relationships of authority regarding who communicates information and the channels used for this communication.

    WOW_3000ZF also taps into the history of art centres that Black people setup during Apartheid. Remembering how she was taught about the evolution and destruction of these spaces, Thulile focuses on their radical nature and how they were used to disseminate information hidden from the public, while situating them within the broader context of South Africa’s history. “These spaces were so central and so active,” Thulile explained, “We have come to a space now where we are kind of realizing that there are a lot of things that haven’t changed but we don’t have these super politically charged art education centres anymore. And there is this missing part of art. It feels like institutionalized fine art [has] the dominant art voice.”. By bringing in curriculum content in this way, Thulile is able to point out the ways that we are not using art.

    This content is presented in humorous and nonsensical ways. At the same time every piece of information or artwork uploaded can be viewed as an intervention in the way it has been presented and the way she teases out the information she shares. “Sometimes I try and give information, like the day when I attached the interview with Wally Serote to talk about the Apartheid government  murdering Thami Mnyele and the Medu Ensemble vs [the day when I shared] a GIF with First Thursdays which is an oversimplification of what has happened. But it is a personal itch that I have and I feel that it is just as relevant to weaving together a history as is historical events or facts about things that happened. I am trying to challenge the way we can tell stories and allowing all of those ways to be valid at the same time.”.

    The course will end with a fun exam that Thulile has planned. To check out the course and more of Thulile’s work visit her website.

     

  • Constructing Future Cities // imagining cities led and designed by women

    Future Cape Town is a leading platform on re-thinking future cities. Through its online presence, research and projects the organization works towards the creation of more democratic, visionary and inclusive cities. I spoke to the founder of Future Cape Town Rashiq Fataar about their Constructing Future Cities project.

    Research increasingly demonstrates that women are occupying leadership positions in business and cities around the world, and yet  the voices of women remain largely absent in the way our cities are designed and planned. In light of this, Mr. Fataar explains that their goal with Constructing Future Cities is to “use artists to give expression to what women think, feel and hope future cities could be. To provoke ideas and interesting possibilities for approaches to cities if they were entirely conceived by women, particularly young women.”. He situates the importance of these conversations within the broader urbanization process rapidly accelerating on the African continent and the gender inequality within the built environment sector. This project as a continuation of the work done by Future Cape Town, recognizes the need to challenge traditional approaches to understanding urban living and planning for the future. “What we have found is that cities of the past have been quite male-dominated in their planning and using a number of unsuccessful modernist-led planning approaches. What this has done is perpetuate inequality, and produce economic systems, justice systems, health systems and environmental systems which do not improve the quality of life for millions of people. We are at an important departure point where we need a new generation of visionaries who will re-imagine cities in a way that addresses the current challenges but also thinks about the future”.

    Future Cape Town’s approach to research includes new informants and mediums to engage with these complexities. This has been put into motion through the Constructing Future Cities project where five women artists were selected to open up the discussion on re-imagining future cities. Choosing to work with artists follows on from their transdisciplinary approach to research and urban living. “It is essential that in this complex, intertwined world where we have been working in silos, where we have been limiting ourselves to our particular fields or professional education, that the future city will require people to grapple with working with new people. And we find that art and artists play a critical role early on in the process to challenge that way of working,” Rashiq explains. The artists they are working with include architecture graduates Amina Kaskar, Sumayya Vally and Sarah de Villiers from Counterspace  (an architectural firm based in Johannesburg), critical spatial practitioner Michelle Mlati and current Masters student in Landscape Architecture Thozama Mputa. Although they approach city-making from different perspectives, their work demonstrates passion for making the city a space for dialogue. These artists have been invited to create work that capture visions for cities, drawing on input from women in Durban, Cape Town and London.

    Image by Thozama Mputa

    The first phase of the project took place in Durban where they visited various parts of the city and hosted a workshop where a panel of 30 women from various sectors convened to discuss the role of women in re-imagining the city. Conversations revolved around the contemporary issues women face as a point of departure for looking at future cities. These issues included the education of women and the limitations that women face in the workplace.

    The next phase of Constructing Future Cities will take place in Cape Town from 22-26 May. They will host another workshop, but the focus of this week will be on the artists putting their work together for the final day’s exhibition, to be held alongside a panel discussion.

    Rashiq reflected on the the relationship that has emerged between Future Cape Town and the artists through their collaboration, emphasizing that their research has been enriched by working with women artists. “We see this part of the programme as more of a catalyst, and we hope to deepen our engagements with these artists and other artists to continue to push forward the idea of the SA city of the future led and designed by women.”.

    To find out more about the Constructing Future Cities programme visit the Future Cape Town website.

    Image from Counterspace

     

    ‘This article forms part of content created for the British Council Connect ZA 2017 Programme. To find out more about the programme click here.’

  • Tarryn Alberts // bringing an explosive energy to dance

    With the nicknames TNT and Boom Boom referencing her explosive energy on stage, Tarryn Alberts is the definition of making your vision a reality. Growing up in Eldorado Park, she has become an inspiration for her family, friends and other kids in her hood. Tarryn and I walked down memory lane reflecting on how her passion for dance has grown into a powerful personal brand over the years.

    The family-oriented dancer recalled her first memories of performing in front of an audience. Her first gig was when she was just 4 years old, performing at a 21st birthday. “I will never forget. My grandmother made us clown suits and put wigs on us. They played Boom Shaka. I don’t even know how I remembered the dance moves, but I remember at that age I was already doing full on choreography. I have been dancing ever since!”. With her family recognizing her inherent desire to move and entertain, Tarryn found people and opportunities being placed in her path that would allow her to do just that.

    To my surprise she mentioned that she used to be bullied for her dancing. “I remember I was doing a performance in high school. The principle had asked me to do an dance for assembly but they had not setup sound or anything! So I thought to myself ‘how is this going to happen?’. They brought in this small radio so for the 600 students it looked like I was dancing to nothing. My best friend was teasing me all day saying ‘yoh you were unplugged dude!’”. During our laughs over this embarrassing moment Tarryn again emphasized her passion for her craft despite moments that can be interpreted as downers.

    During her primary school years Tarryn trained in jazz, afrofusion and modern dance. These basic styles have carried through in her growth as a professional dancer. However, encouragement from her mother to dabble with different types of dance has allowed Tarryn to expand her relationship with dance and appreciation for expression through movement. When she was 16 she joined the hip hop crew, B-Supreme. “We were always into battles. By then it had moved away from just B-boy battling to hip hop dancing. We were everywhere. We were doing competitions, we were doing talents shows. By then I already knew that this was going to be my life. I had decided to be physically active for the rest of my life and I wanted to make money like this.”. When she was 17 she decided to go pro, with her and her crew getting booked for music videos and other gigs.

    After high school she travelled to Germany for a year as part of a production that would entertain children and old-aged people. This time in Germany also included doing workshops at schools on self-esteem, racism, the use of drugs and offering motivation for young people. Tarryn explained that this time away from home confirmed her zeal for movement. It also planted a desire to be an inspiration for young people in her hood. “It took like 3 years before people actually started realizing ‘oh wow this girl is actually a dancer’… But I am able to look back and say ‘I worked hard’.”

    “I have never had a ‘normal’ job in my life. No, I’m lying. I was a receptionist for three days then left. I was always listening to music and dancing in my chair!”. Choosing a creative outlet as a career path in South Africa can be quite a conflicting decision. Tarryn confesses to me moments of uncertainty and disappointment. But she always reminded herself that dancing has opened her life to people who provide encouragement and experiences she would not have otherwise had the pleasure of being a part of.

    “It’s so funny. People always ask me ‘where did you learn to dance?’ Besides the formal stuff, it is from self-training. From watching music videos and hanging with my friends.” The importance of learning from other people comes through clearly when Tarryn describes her personal dance style. She explains that her dance style is adapted from six people she knows personally – Manthe Ribane, Lee-che Janecke, Sne Mbatha, J-Star, Tom London from Soweto’s Finest and her dance teacher Gladys Agulhas. Drawing inspiration from multiple people has been important for how she has sculpted herself as a dancer. “When you train in dancing you learn the fundamentals in a certain style. A lot of dancers, I have noticed, just stick to that style. Over the years from learning, and now being the person I am, I have created my own dance style.”.

    Tarryn describes dancing as an outlet that allows her to feel free. “I can be anyone I want to be. On stage I can be angry, happy, sad. I can interpret things differently”. Tarryn also views dance as a form of meditation and as a spiritual message. “I started realizing that this thing is actually a spiritual thing. You know when they say you have to get your mind, your body and your soul in one thing.”. She has learnt to connect with her body and listen to the messages that it sends her.

    One of her career highlights has been touring with Die Antwoord. She will being going on a tour with them for the fourth time this year, travelling to the Americas and Europe. Tarryn has also been a part of a number of campaigns including the Nike ‘Believe in More’ campaign for Nikewomen. Her relationship with the Nike team has grown, and while visiting their HQ in Portland she was asked to curate 12 looks for Spring 18. She has also become the ambassador for a makeup brand that will be launching in South Africa at the end of May.

    Appreciative of the positive response to her chosen field, Tarryn expressed that she hopes to continue to inspire kids to believe in more than what they think is normal or to think beyond what they have been told they will amount to.

    Shoot Credits

    Photography by Liezl Zwarts

    Creative Direction & Styling by Jamal Nxedlana

    Hair by Ncumisa Mimi Duma

    Makeup by Katelyn Hughes

    Cover Image: Tarryn wears a baby blue beaded dress by JJ Schoeman, shoes and accessories stylists own.

    Look 1: Tarryn wears a yellow sequined dress by JJ Schoeman, shoes and accessories stylists own.

    Look 3: Tarryn wears green jumpsuit for the David Tlale archive, shoes and accessories stylists own.

  • [wo]mannequin // a multimedia exhibition and social experiment

    I interviewed artist Robyn Perros about her work [wo]mannequin on show at the new experimental gallery space The Other Room in Durban.

    The exhibition includes two videos titled @Herr1234 and Don’t Look. In @Herr1234 we are introduced to the character Herr through the documentation of an experimental performance of the mute mannequin walking through Durban’s CBD as it tries to discover a sense of self.  This performance explores the role the camera plays in distorting reality, our obsession with the body, self-promotion and gender identity as a performance. Don’t Look explores the ‘everyday’ perversions of society and the erotic feelings affirmed in image making. The participatory installation Worn sees used mannequins displayed on a wall. Audiences were invited to share comments, thoughts and drawings on these plastic bodies. The exhibition also includes photographic images mostly shot in analogue. In our interview Robyn expands on her work and the experimental elements in this exhibition.

    Tell our readers about you and your art practice

    When I moved to Durban in 2014, I spent most of my free time exploring the city in solitude. My weekends were spent walking, observing, listening (basically loitering). I suppose my ‘art’ developed out of this exploration. I told my friend, fellow artist and street photographer, Samora Chapman, about the places I was going. He said: “Fuck! You should be shooting!” He gave me his Dad’s old camera and I started making pictures.

    I was into video during university, but had never explored photography much at all. Later I was given an old Pentax analogue camera from my step-father. I began experimenting with film and have never turned back. I love photographing inanimate objects, spaces in between and what it means to be human. My interest in participatory methods, anthroposophy, dreams also inform my art practice. Some of my influences: Nan Goldin, Martin Parr, Susan Sontag, Herman Hesse, Roald Dahl – but mostly my creative circle of friends.

    (I never studied art or photography. My academic background is in Journalism and Ethnomusicology. But I have been working as a writer, photojournalist, and online editor in Durban for the past two years. I’m now freelancing / hustling for any form of income before I head to Sweden to live in my sister’s basement, work, study and join a bobsled team 😉

    You describe [wo]mannequin as an “exhibition and experiment”. This is interesting. Would you like to elaborate on this?

    I describe it as an exhibition for obvious reasons: I am displaying a set of physical works which people can come to a physical space and engage with. However my interest truly lies in public art, participation and process. So there are elements of this exhibition which are social experiments. These being two public performances (one done in the Durban CBD and one on the opening night of the exhibition by Herr) as well as a participatory installation, which is still growing.

    One undertakes an experiment in order to make some sort of discovery. So what happens when you take a live walking mannequin and let it loose on the streets? What happens when you put it in a gallery space? Same object. Different context. Contrasting (yet some similar) outcomes. Any art conducted in the public space, is an experiment. Because ‘the other’ is any person or thing that is not me. Therefore, we can make assumptions, but can never really know how people are going to react. This is the magic.

    I have been monitoring these reactions to Herr’s performances and the participatory installation in order to better understand my own art practice and ‘the other’. But of course, experiments rely on a repeatable procedure. And this is one which is ongoing with no fixed conclusions (or lab rats).

    You also describe [wo]mannequin as a “continuing exploration and confrontation of the role my own political body, and the bodies of others, play within the carcass of South African society today”. Would you like to elaborate on this, specifically on confronting the role of your own political body and South African society as a carcass.

    We are constantly watching ourselves. Yet isn’t it strange that we can never truly see our physical selves? That we are always looking at ourselves through some form of reflection – a mirror, a window, a photographic image, a screen. We have a physical body – it’s made up of the most intricate organs, oxygen, water, cells, DNA, etc. But of course we have a political body too. Where skin is not just cells. Where language is not just sound. Where clothes are not just fibers. Where the places we occupy are not just geography. What these signify to others, is political. It is this body that is socially controlled. It is this body we fixate on. And attempting to understand it, stripping it down and confronting it is important to me in order to build a more honest relationship with myself. And all humans, humanoids and living creatures alike.

    Death is a huge theme in my work and I say carcass not to be gruesome, sensational or insensitive, but because death, as painful as it is, is a positive thing and it is not always physical. Old ideas need to die before new ones emerge. Death means life. But nothing truly dies anyway does it? Things just reform, take new shape. I think South Africa and the world is in an exciting reforming process. Despite my seemingly bleak subject matter of plastic people – I feel incredibly positive about the future of the country, the continent, the world, humanity et al.

    You also see the mannequin as occupying the space between life and death, commodity and body, destruction and reconstruction of humanity and of self. Elaborate on the significance of this. I am particularly interested in the body/commodity dichotomy.

    These are loaded concepts to unpack and “there are no short answers, not if you really want to know” (Paul Myburgh) 😉 But I think I touched the surface of what I mean about life and death / destruction and reconstruction in the question above. So I’ll try to focus on the body / commodity theme here. The perhaps more obvious themes this work unpacks is the use of the body, particularly the women’s body, to sell. Encouraging objectification and consumerism to which the woman / womxn often falls victim to.

    I placed big neon pink FOR SALE // ON SPECIAL signs below all of my exhibition photographs. I don’t want to hide the fact that art is money. And I often wonder why art should be elevated from the perceived ‘low art’ of something like window dressing (the home of the mannequin). Mannequins are these silent salespeople, objects to play with, aspire to, to dress and undress. As a women, our bodies are constantly under question and scrutiny. As an artist today, we have had to become self-promotors – using our bodies to carry out and essentially sell our ideas, products and performances. If the work is a part of us, are we not selling ourselves? Meh, capitalism.

    You also state that “this self-reflective multimedia exhibition essentially explores the remoteness of the real”. Would you like to elaborate on what you mean by this?

    Looking at an event, or a person’s life, in photographed form has become more and more equivalent to participating in it. This obsession with documenting and preserving reality through photographs has, in one sense, doomed us. Distancing us from reality, it has inhibited us from engaging wholly in the world. Of course, the camera grants us access and assists us in seeing the world more acutely in another sense, I am not denying its importance and value. But is this concept of disconnect I am interrogating at the moment. How images can often simplify the chaos of lived experience. That is their beauty and their curse.

    Mannequins themselves omit the real… nipples, pubic hair, bumps, pregnancy, varicose veins. (Where they at!?) Not to mention the predominant white plastic they are made of, what that omits and how problematic that in itself is in reflecting “reality”! Colonialism // whitewashing.

    I often feel like these plastic dolls. Staring out through the glass of privilege, the cage of physicality ­- watching life happen around me, unable to partake in it, to run with it. It is this yearning for slowing down, for real human encounters, real human connection that moves me. In a sense, the mannequins were the best portraits of humans I could capture without pointing a camera at others. The best self-portraits I could capture without pointing a camera at myself. In a world governed by material objects, it would seem appropriate to express humanity through them.

    Would you like to say something specific about Herr and this character featuring in the video @Herr1234?

    The concept of Herr developed from the often unwanted attention my solitude gets in the city. The place of my political body in the city is often suspected and questioned. I have often been followed, asked if I am a prostitute, homeless, a Whoonga addict, a preacher of the gospel, or just a lost German tourist. To which I usually just reply, “No. I am just walking.” From a young age, women in particular are taught to guard their bodies, to not get hurt, to watch rather than participate. This I think is learned behaviour and of course yes, we must protect ourselves and others, but I often think this fear of physical harm holds women back more than it should.

    My presence is often perplexing in places that are “not safe for a woman” and I developed this character, Herr, who is supposed to be a living mannequin in order to amplify this solitude into hyper-solitude. By drawing attention to my vulnerability and using it as a source of power. She owns the space in which I would ordinarily be trying to blend into or hide behind, using the camera.

    The character, Herr, simultaneously developed from my ‘uneasiness’ with self-promotion as an artist. From the persona I project online via social media and the pressure that arises from that. I use Herr to explore societies ‘uneasiness’ with blurred gender lines // gender as performance // subject as object // self-promotion // and the limitations of the body in complex public spaces. She is a developing character / public performer and we have big plans.

    Are there any specific artworks or moments at the exhibition opening you would like to mention?

    On the opening night Herr was sitting alone in the centre of the room on a plastic chair. Mute, still, watching its own reflection and the activity of those in the space via a set of mirrors. Here, Herr was the spectacle of its own exhibition. Yet it was an object without agency. Internalizing the gaze of ‘the other’.

    It was interesting for me to witness the performance of socializing happening around me without having to participate in it. This is often what the camera in itself does – it magnetizes attention. Yet at the same time – confirms alienation. It is this border I am constantly on the verge on in my own personal life. The border between participant and observer. Awake and sleep.

    Artists themselves are often so self-conscious and self-aware. And in this way I was able to experience my own work more intimately by being a character within it. I would have felt like a mannequin anyway at my own exhibition, so in a sense I was revealing this vulnerability of the artist. The idea of concealing myself in order to reveal myself.

    To witness how people altered their behavior and became conscious of their own physical bodies knowing there was a presence in the room, watching them, like a camera, was also an interesting dynamic. Mostly, people in the space spoke about themselves – what they looked like, what they felt, what their experiences were – rather than the work and the obvious presence in the room. Narcissism – another big theme.

    Here, I was inviting people to look at me, to touch me, to engage with me / Herr. But this didn’t really happen in the gallery room. But it happened on the streets. Therefore, the gallery is the safest and most dangerous place for art, isn’t it?

    Would you like to say something about showing this work at The Other Room Durban?

    The Other Room is a space for artists / thinkers / creators / whoever to explore new work, test ideas, throw something out there. It is so necessary for a space like this to exist and I am so proud and priveleged to have shared my work there. [Wo]mannequin is the third experiment / exhibition to be held at The Other Room, ahead of the brilliant minds of Donovan Orr and Doung Anwar Jahangeer.

    The Other Room is the baby of Matthew Ovendale, a phenomenal artist, mind and dear friend. I did not study art or photography, but I have tons of projects and ideas I’m exploring all the time. Matt knew I had been photographing mannequins and invited me to share some of my work. My exhibition grew and changed over the course of a month and Matt assisted me throughout the whole process. We explored new mediums together, such as working with chemical plastics to make an actual plastic mold and mask of my own face. He was as excited about the project, as if it were his own.

    I probably would never have gotten around to sharing and delving into this work the way I did without the space and support. The Other Room such a kif spot for people to get together, share, talk and engage with one another’s work. A step in the right direction. I was able to collaborate with so many incredible people on this project because of it and I can’t thank them enough.

    To check out more of Robyn’s work visit her Tumblr.

  • Simon Deporres AW17 Collection ‘Decade’

    To commemorate their 10 year anniversary, South African menswear brand Simon Deporres launched their AW17 collection, Decade. This collection continues with their signature design aesthetic – utilitarian minimalism. In the signature Simon Deporres approach to fashion, the collection focuses on timeless pieces that can be carried over through seasons.

    The range of jackets and coats includes the Sherpa Bomber, the Cedar Parka, the Shearling Aviator, and the Alphen Blazer which together are the epitome of Simon Deporres design. The use of quality fabric combines durability, function and style.  Those in the mood for something a little more casual will find their Niseko Nomad half-zip hoodie appealing. The collection also includes a range of shirts and trousers.

    View the full range on their website.

  • Balthazaar Designs – making upcycling fashionable

    When she isn’t going for runs with her dog or hiking, Jessi-Jean Havemann is at her desk designing the magic that is Balthazaar bags and cushions. With an ethical approach to how she makes her makes her bags, Jessi-Jean believes that anyone can change the world. I had an interview with her about her love for vintage carpets and how this inspired the idea for Balthazaar.

    Tell our readers about how you got into the fashion world?

    I studied fashion design and dropped out in my first year to rather travel the world and learn traditional fabrication techniques first hand. Some of the techniques I learnt included batik, a technique for dyeing cloth, which I learnt in Indonesia. I also learnt leather manipulation and dying in Morocco. Close to mt heart was the sustainable and ethical practices I learnt in Thailand.

    Where did the idea for Balthazaar come from?

    I wanted to start a brand that operates ethically. I’ve always been fond of carpets. They are the first thing I’ll look at if I walk into a room. They are long lasting and I wanted a material that can last forever. Balthazaar is all about upcycling and using what we have and not depleting what little resources we have left.

    Tell our readers about your creative process?

    The vintage carpets from Morocco I went over and sourced myself. They are then air freighted over. Once they land I’ll go and sit with the people I work with, either in Mitchells Plain or at my Studio in Hout Bay, and start cutting up the carpets and all the leather patterns.  Then the carpet cut-offs get sent to CMTs with industrial machines to be overlocked. Once sent back with us the leather pockets, labels, leather straps, pompoms and embellishments get hand sewn on. I also have an agent that goes to Pakistan and brings back vintage camel saddle bags and the above process continues.

    You mentioned that every item is handmade and ethically sourced, can you expand on this? Tell our readers about why this is so important to you and how you feel this adds to the brand? Perhaps you could also mention the connection between the idea to recycle and the ethics of fashion.

    The camel saddle bags and carpets are all handmade by women in Pakistan for husbands on long journeys through the desert to ward off illness and provide protection along their travels. The latest camel saddle bags in my collection are from Pakistan and were made for women on their wedding day by their family. They represent health, strength and guidance. Once they are on South Africa’s shores they go to the people I work with in Mitchells Plain and get hand stitched together. Both of the people I work with there have been trained by me, so I have been able to pass on my skills to other people. I hope to grow my team and be able to support more families in South Africa. It is important to me to create skilled jobs for South Africans, use vintage materials then up-cycle them, and not mass produce in unethical factories.

    Tell our readers more about the people you empower through creating your bags?

    Brandon and Pamela are like family to me. I hope by teaching them skills and being there for them I can empower them to be open to more opportunities. I’m happy when they work with me as well as use their new skills to generate more income for themselves and their family.

    You also mentioned that “A Balthazaar handbag has a unique story and an exotic character of its own.” Could you expand on this?

    Think about all the journeys these camel saddle bags have been on across deserts and into homes across Africa. I feel their energy of their past lives still emanate from them now.  One bag could have been a camel rider alone and independent in the desert and another could have been a princess’s gift on her wedding day to the love of her life or the man of her nightmares. They all have so much character, it delights me dreaming of there past lives.

    Tell our readers about your latest collection – the inspiration for this, how they came to life, the creative process, where you sourced carpets from, etc.

    The latest collection as I said above are camel saddle bags made for Pakistani women on their wedding days. You can tell this by the bright pompom’s and tassels on the bags. A friend of mine got married recently and this range was made with her in mind.

    What are you working on at the moment?

    At the moment, large “day bed” cushions made out of vintage carpets for lounging on indoors and outdoors.

    How to envision the future of Balthazaar?

    I’d like to have more of an international clientele. Once I get bigger overseas I hope to grow my team and create more skilled jobs here in South Africa.

    Visit Balthazaar on Facebook to keep up with that Jessi-Jean has planned for the year.

  • Femme in Music: On Tour with Ikonika

    A short film was put together on that time that London-based electronic musician, producer and DJ Ikonika spent in South Africa on a teaching and performance tour.

    “I think females make the best DJs. Womxn are the best tastemakers to me” – Ikonika.

    These opening lines encapsulate her approach to her music. The film sees Ikonika reflect on her time mentoring other femme-identifying people as part of the DJ workshops hosted by Pussy Party in partnership with British Council/Connect ZA. Those whom she mentored also reflect on what it is like to be in the industry in South Africa, as well as express what Pussy Party allows them to address. We see how the cities of Cape Town, Johannesburg and Durban are connected through these workshops and parties. The desire to create a platform for femme bodies in the DJ/producer role is mirrored in the film by only femme voices speaking.

  • Chips! // An alternative voice on food culture

    Editor of the new online publication and occasional printed zine Chips! Alix-Rose Cowie chats to me about how conversations about food open up an avenue for sharing how we live our lives.

    Tell our readers about the thinking behind Chips! Elaborate on why you think writing about food is the perfect way to think through other topics?

    The food world can sometimes feel pretentious which is ridiculous because everybody eats! Everybody has a relationship with food and we’re interested in what it says about their lives. Like we say in the intro to our first zine: nowhere is culture more apparent than at the table. Through food, our first issue touches on (however lightly) converting to Islam, parenting, adoption, travel, pop culture, history, immigration and gender roles.

    Tell our readers who is part of the Chips! team? 

    Chips! is published by Studio H, designed by Kinsmen, and edited by me (I also shoot a lot of our photo stories).

    Could you tell our readers a bit more about Studio H?

    Studio H is a culinary-minded, multi-disciplinary design studio specialising in experience design. They run food conferences, workshops, installations and experimental dinners that play with sensorial perception or imagine future foods.

    Studio H is also the team behind the annual Street Food Festivals in Johannesburg and Cape Town. Chips! was born out of the firm belief that every creative team should have a side project that they are super passionate about. Studio H had been dreaming, plotting and planning a food magazine for years.

    For those readers who do not know, would you like to share something about you and what you do? 

    We’re a quarterly publication meaning we release a new issue every 3 months online and occasionally as a printed zine. We use food as a broad theme to talk about other things like culture, life, travel. We’re South African-made but globally conscious

    Tell our readers about the thinking behind the first issue, Hol(e)y, where you discuss food and religion?

    Our initial first theme idea was ‘The chicken or the egg?’ which was apt for a beginning. We liked the idea of going beyond the food (chicken or eggs), using the theme to talk about origins, or an unsolved argument, or choosing sides. But then Lucky Peach (RIP) came out with their chicken issue and their cook book All About Eggs.

    We liked the idea of Hol(e)y because religion is something you’re not supposed to talk about at the dinner table which creates a great tension to play with. Religion has been a major factor determining what people eat or don’t eat around the world since forever, so much so that it has become cultural or behavioural. We also liked the playfulness of food with holes in it. As Matthew Freemantle writes in Issue #1’s ‘Holey Bagel’: “You don’t look at a slice of rye bread or a rusk and feel the same way you do about a bagel, for instance. Round things are fun and, when they have a hole in the middle, they’re more than that – they’re funny.”

    With its duality, the theme Hol(e)y allows us to be sometimes serious and other times tongue in cheek.

    You feature stories from South Africa and other countries in this issue. You also combine writing with videos and styled shoots of food. Could you please elaborate on how you have curated this issue?

    Food is multi-sensory so we wanted to recreate this experience as far as we could through using different mediums. We hoped to create texture through publishing stories from different places in a range of voices and deliveries.

    Would you like to share something about the contributors for this issue?

    We have big love for all the contributors of our first issue for believing in the vision and saying yes to something that didn’t exist yet. They wrote and sent images from as far as Prague, Bangkok and Visakhapatnam, India and as close as Johannesburg and Cape Town. We see all our contributors as part of a Chips! club that will grow with each new issue. You don’t have to be a food writer to contribute to Chips!, we welcome art writers, fashion photographers, novelists – food affects everyone.

    Can you let us in on what you have planned for the next issue?

    We can only give you this one $mall hint.

    What is the vision you have for Chips!

    We want to be an alternative voice on food culture through the writers that we publish and we want to present food in an exciting new way through our photography. We want to give the world a taste of South Africa through Chips!. We want to keep things fun.

    Be sure to check out their first issue to get a taste of this multi-sensory menu.

  • ZIBAYO – capturing transient moments

    I interviewed Valentino Zondi and Lilli Bagradyans who make up the creative duo ZIBAYO.

    Durban-born Valentino solidified his call for creative expression when he attended film school, which has contributed to his current work as a photographer and art director. Through trial and error he now finds himself in possession of a CV with work for some of the coolest brands and a few awards. Lilli has found her creative expression within the triangle of architecture, art and music. Having grown up in Germany and being of Armenian origin, she described South Africa as providing a turning point in her creative journey. Having found each other while Lilli was working on an urban project in South Africa, she describes their joint artistic endeavors as reminders of who she is.

    Valentino explained that the name ZIBAYO stands for transience. “Everything is transient,” he adds, “moments, encounters, experiences. Everything is transient besides the art we create.”. Through their work they try to conserve the momentary occurrences they experience and witness around them.

    Exhibition in Munich

    Together they intend to create a new space for art by combining their differences. “We come from nations which have been divided by differences in religion and race. We feel it is our responsibility to usher in a new way of looking at our differences as human beings, the idea of a black man and a white woman working together as a duo is foreign to some minds. It is in that space that we want to create, in a space that confronts and questions our basic frame of thinking,” Valentino explains.

    Their joint art practice involves Lilli transforming an element of photographs taken by Valentino into a painting. “We go back [to where the photograph was taken] with the painted element to reframe it into a situation that is identical to the original captured image. In the reframing, the painting is given new life in a newly shot photograph,” Valentino explains. This is all done without the use of post production editing platforms.

    Their first series of exhibitions titled HIDDEN IDENTITIES looks at the aftermath of gentrification in parts of Johannesburg. Exploring the lives of the people who once occupied the streets where they are no longer welcome, the first chapter of this series of exhibitions took place in Maboneng where the streets were used as an exhibition space. “This gave the individuals [who were photographed] a chance to see themselves…In our conversations with them when we were creating this body of work, most of them expressed feelings of being isolated and secluded from Maboneng…By exhibiting in the streets of Maboneng and inviting them, we closed that void of being excluded,” Valentino explained.

    HIDDEN IDENTITIES then went to London and was presented at the Armenian Symposium: Armenians in a Global Context in April. In London they built the bridge between HIDDEN IDENTITIES and their next project which is going to be produced in Armenia later this year. They then moved on to exhibit at Kosk Gallery in Munich alongside sculptor Max Boström’s project, EXIT THROUGH CONSUMPTION. The exhibition is moving to Rome, and will make its final appearance in Johannesburg again. “We will be adding a few more pieces in the collection. That is how we do it for every city. So when it returns to Johannesburg, it will have more work than when we left.”.

    Lilli and Valentino have got plans to expand their joint creative practice by releasing a fashion project that will include photographs taken from different places in Africa.

    Check out ZIBAYO on Facebook and Instagram to keep up with their work.

     

  • DJ Doowap // The soulful BASS queen

    “Every road is a catwalk”

    Embracing the power of this quote has made Khetsiwe Morgan aka DJ Doowap one of the most recognizable babes in the South African music space. I had a conversation with the live mix DJ and queen of bass about where it all began.

    After high school Doowap went over to the UK as a South African springboard diver, but soon found herself falling in love with the sonic energies and freedom that came from the underground club scene. She used to dance all night at gay rave parties with her friends, which had a great influence on the direction she chose to go with her own music. “They [the parties] were the best because everyone would just let loose…You were completely free. You could dress however you want. No one judges you coz everyone is just dressing crazy and skimpy.”. With the vibrations of dancehall, jungle, garage and bass music moving through her body, she found an escape from the tough life that London presented to her. During this time she started studying sound engineering, but was feeling lost. So she came to back to South Africa in 2012.

    “I think the culture and the energy in South Africa got me back on my feet and got me seeing colour again, because I think I had just forgotten what colour looked like,” Doowap expressed. She continued her studies at the Academy of Sound Engineering in Auckland Park. Telling me about the times she would hang out with childhood friend Da L.E.S, she recalls saying to him “I think I want to do DJing, because I need some money right now and there is nothing else I like doing”. It was not long before she was introduced the DJ and producer Ian Credible at DJ for Life. During her lessons with him Doowap was able to bring together the sonic energies she had absorbed while in London and develop a sound that amalgamates hip hop, gqom and bass. Before she knew it she had her first gig at Roxy’s in Melville.

    “I remember it perfectly!” Doowap exclaimed. She recalls the only person dancing during her set was the friend she had invited. “I wasn’t nervous because I already knew no one would know what I am doing…I felt a bit shit obviously because you want people to be dancing. But at the same time I know I got to teach everyone in the crowd something”. The next day she received a call from Yfm. Excited by the new sounds she was playing, they wanted her on their team. “It was a blessing in disguise having a whole different genre.”.

    While she was at Yfm she wanted to discover music from home. Young bass producers were sending her their music, and she became a catalyst for many of them to get played on radio. At the time bass music was a relatively new genre in South Africa and was not getting that much air time on radio stations. Her show became the centre for introducing this new sound to the airwaves. “It was an amazing time to discover fresh talent when they did not have a platform to put out their music. They had all this bass sound and they didn’t even know where they were getting it from. It was just coming from their soul,” Doowap explained, “And I liked the freedom that Yfm gave me. It was great that I could choose anyone I wanted and put their songs on.”.

    Taking a moment to reflect on how her music has evolved since 2012, Doowap feels as though the main element which has changed is that her music has more soul. “I think in the beginning I was just playing songs I liked back to back… Before I was playing bass but it was really hard electronic bass. It didn’t feel soulful. And now I really make sure that every song I play has a positive message in it, and it hits you deep inside, you know, with the vibrations.”. When armed with good bass speakers, she has seen how this soulful element in her music has allowed her to captivate a crowd and guide them to what she described as a “trance of bass”.

    Doowap’s love for the genre deepened when she started reading about how bass music is powerful for women and the womb. “Bass is all for you bottom chakras, and that is really good for women. It soothes your womb.”.

    Thinking about how bass music has grown in South Africa, Doowap pointed out that people do not realize how much the genre has infiltrated their lives. “Everyone wonders why they are all raging and losing their minds but it is because of the bass. That bass that makes your legs shake and makes you want to lose your mind. It is there the whole time and it’s very rare that you will get songs without it”. Having been on the scene in South Africa since its infancy, Doowap has enjoyed watching people dive into it and experiment with that they can do with the sound.

    A highlight for Doowap at the moment is being the presenter for a new hip hop rap battle show dropping on SABC 1 next week called One Mic. She will also be going to Berlin on the 19th of May to play at a club called SchwuZ. Having found the love for bass at gay raves in London, and to now being booked to play a 3 hour set at one of the biggest gay clubs in Europe, Doowap has come full circle.

  • Bubblegum Club Stories Ep13

    In this episode we share footage from our visit to the Puma Select store in Braamfontein where we got the info on Select Stories, a series of streetwear collaborations and workshops with Puma to showcase local talent. Our fashion feature sees DOCC founder Nokana Mojapelo translate construction wear into fashion for the streets. We checked out RHTC Store where they were photographing those who were part of their documentary Let’s Play Outside which looks at travel and collaboration. We also share footage of the secret location moving party hosted by music label ARTIS Records.