Archive for the
‘Narrative’ Category

We have loved working with the incredibly inspiring African artist Reggie Khumalo. Reggie is an adventurer, artist and philanthropist. Current travelling through the continent on his motorbike, he is painting and tapping into the abundant Ubuntu spirit that he encounters on his way.

We were first called in to work with him on his debut Lagos exhibition, curated by BrownEyedBoy and JRoom London. Through our extensive media network we scooped the cover of The Sunday Times Lifestyle section, VISI magazine, Timeslive, WANTED online and the Daily Maverick.

There is also TV in the lineup which we can’t wait to share details of when it airs. Add into this we were commissioned to design the catalogue that was distributed throughout South Africa and Nigeria showcasing Reggie’s amazing talents.

As evident this was a hugely successful campaign, with an editorial value of over R600k and a 2000% return on investment.

From this fantastic partnership we have been called in to promote Reggie’s forthcoming trip through East Africa. Now, he is travelling with a team of content makers to document his unique way of seeing. His works from this trip will be exhibited later in the year at a solo show in London, plus further shows in Europe and New York.

This trip is aligned with his work as a High-Level Supporter of the UN World Food Programme and as well as giving a percentage of the profit from his works back to the WFP, he is also visiting projects on the ground during his adventure.

“I’m always searching for is the spirit of Ubuntu,” says the artist. From the start of my journey, I’ve always been on that search, but now I want to show it a bit more with the whole world watching.

“How we operate in Africa; how we have this kindness and love for each other. And I think it’s a journey that reconnects me again to the beginning, but at the same time it will take me further ahead in my journey still.”

For more on Reggie: https://reggiekhumalo.com/

With two weeks to go before the 2022 Investec Cape Town Art Fair we were asked to help promote the work of internationally acclaimed artist Barry Salzman.

Salzman’s work, a collection of landscapes entitled How We See The World, include extremely beautiful photos that question and honour the soul of a place, specifically those of global genocide sites.

His images dig deep below the surface. Aesthetically beautiful (Salzman shoots with a long-open aperture) they probe questions of belonging, memory and accountability. “I use the landscape metaphorically to draw connections between each of these disparate and dark moments in modern history,” he explains. “ [I suggest] that we, as members of an amorphous humanity, form the true connective tissue between them.”

Alongside this series, his gallery, Deepest Darkest Art showcased the full collection of his posthumous portraits of victims from the Rwandan genocide. The Day I Became Another Genocide Victim is a stark portrayal of the items of clothing 100 victims (men, women and children) wore on the last day of their lives.

“My hope is that each of these posthumous portraits forces us to imagine, and therefore commemorate, the lives of those who were killed during the genocide,” he says. “We can never comprehend one million dead people. We can, however, imagine the life story of this little boy carrying his doggy backpack, and each of the other people represented in this series. We can know them. Up until the day they were murdered, each lived at the center of their own story.”

The exhibition needed more than just a sweeping review. It’s evident Barry is a riveting, erudite art maker, his work is incredibly considered and as much as we love a 200 word overview, we were determined to not only ensure he got deeper coverage, but there was a real uncovering of the story behind the series and an valuable reflection of the evocative nature of the work.

Presented by vivo mobile and Turn Up Music, the #vivoIconSeries brought together ten of South Africa’s top musicians for a portraiture session, to showcase their authentic creative spirits and electrical African energy.

Shot by internationally recognised photographer, Travys Owen, the shoot saw the ten musicians, including Khuli Chana, Moonchild, Rowlene, YoungstaCPT and more, collaborate with industry leading creatives: Boogy Maboi led the styling, using clothes and accessories that allowed each musician’s essential essence to shine, Kgomotso Moloto worked on hair, creating bespoke weaves and head-pieces and master make-up artist Orli O played with colours and textures.

The result? A strong portrait set that allows each creative’s personality to shine.

This was such an incredible initiative,” says multi-award winner Khuli Chana. “This shoot and the ability to co-create with some of the best in the business has really turned up the creativity. I’ve always been in support of the idea that anything is possible and the energy here really captures that.

Co-produced by Emma Jordan, the day ended with a celebration event. We bought Belvedere vodka to the party – where they showcased for the first time in SA, their single estate rye offering . Coverage included 10and5, Afternoon Express Show, The Sunday Times, plus Glamour, GQ and more.

When approached by Perfect Hideaways to work with the team on marketing and growing the luxury lifestyle brand, an obvious next step was the development of lifestyle products. Iconic pieces, made in South Africa, that are redolent of the Perfect Hideaways way of life: luxury properties that are exclusively rented out through the portal and each presenting a definitive element of taste and class.

These products could include candles, wine, hats, baskets, and of course blankets. South Africa is one of the world’s biggest wool producers and has a long history of craftmanship. We reached out to Blankets from Africa, an upliftment initiative producing handmade blankets by women in the Karoo.

Created exclusively for Perfect Hideaways the blankets are made from the softest pure merino wool. As a first product to market the challenge was to have stock ready without buying up front. This was solved through Blankets for Africa who offered a incredible service in which they would make to order with a three month lead time.

We introduced the blankets through the extremely responsive PH IG account and ran a competition across Perfect Hideaways and Perfect Hideaways Invest (the sister sales arm of the company). We also presented plans to make a short video showcasing the making of the blanket as well as a PR rollout and exclusive offer to shop through South Africa’s top décor magazine, House & Leisure, alongside the immediate customer base: the Perfect Hideaways homeowners.

We absolutely love working on product development through collaboration, and documentation through video, photography and story-telling, plus a to-market strategy and roll-out.