When Cara Saven and Dylan Joseph met on the top of Table Mountain as they unfurled the WeLoveSA banner following the Gauteng and KZN riots earlier in the year, they made a pledge to continue supporting and uplifting South Africa.
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Cara, the founder and director of Cara Saven Wall Design and Dylan Joseph of Semper Fortis, entered into conversation with Tshepo Mohlala of Tshepo Jeans, and together they created a multi-layered installation, embodying their commitment to a unified, positive South Africa, driven by the creative industries.
“We live in a beautiful country, surrounded by nature and authentic human beings,” says Joseph. “If you get a group of artists in a room with a good idea they will trigger even more ideas. Through this ideology we decided to collaborate, to blend our visions of South Africa through the mediums that already carry our signatures and create an emotional response in our market.”
“After the incredible response that Dylan and I saw to the banner of love, we decided that like-minded entrepreneurs could make a difference to the negative sentiment that exists for many South Africans,” continues Saven.
The first iteration of #WeDesignSA launched on the opening night of Design Joburg Collective at the Semper Fortis showroom in October. Now, on Thursday December 2, the trio will bring their collaboration to life at the Semper Fortis showroom in Bo Kaap, Cape Town.
Encapsulating a vision for an optimistic future for South Africa, the pivot of the installation is a beautiful wallpaper by Cara. Entitled Halcyon, the mystical landscape is a vibrant homage to our home. Resplendent with aloes, fruit, flowers and birds, the Halycon celebrates the diversity and brightness of our land. The Halycon kingfisher is a symbol for peace and prosperity.
This bespoke image has been reprinted onto fabric which covers a modern love seat, the Prana chair, a unique piece of furniture by Semper Fortis. The print is also carried through to a jumpsuit by Tshepo Jeans – the first item of womenswear designed by Tshepo. Together they sit as an integral whole, a showcase for the power of collaboration, individually strong, together resilient and extremely powerful.
“It’s time for creative entrepreneurs to step into the light,” said Tshepo, who will have a pop-up of his coveted jeans in-situ for 24hrs around the #WeDesignSA event. “South Africans are naturally resilient and entrepreneurial and this I believe is seen in the 70s inspired garment I designed to exude the presence and confidence of the South African woman wearing it.”
“This project is informed by all our roots,” explains Saven. “I am a Capetonian at heart and am naturally inspired by nature. My contribution has a mythical undertone, but is essentially bright and brave and very much reflective of the South African spirit.”
The #WeDesignSA instillation will launch on Thursday December 2, at the Semper Fortis showroom Bo Kaap at 5pm and will run through December/January 2021.
To further support the growth of South African entrepreneurship a portion of profit from sales of the Cara Saven Halcyon Design will be donated to the Over the Rainbow foundation, an organisation offering guidance and support to South African entrepreneurs.
About Semper Fortis
Semper Fortis offers bespoke furniture that is carefully handcrafted in South Africa. They are dedicated to quality, craftsmanship, comfort and customer service.
They’ve been preserving the craft of making bespoke furniture in South Africa for over 20 years, employing skilled artisans and passionate professionals at their factory in Cape Town. With generations of expertise, these talented furniture makers and designers are at the very heart of the brave brand.
About Cara Saven Wall Design
Winner of the 2021 Santam Woman of the Future Award Cara Saven launched Cara Saven Wall Design in 2006. Based out of Cape Town, with a global reach, Cara Saven Wall Design aims to make the world a little more beautiful with the addition of custom designed wallpaper, canvases, framed prints and vinyls, which are supported by a complete service, from design to installation.
Clients include interior designers, corporates, creative agencies, architects and many other businesses. Some of the previous installations have included the One and Only hotel in Cape Town and Southern Sun Hotels. Their work can be found as far afield as North Africa, Europe and Asia.
About Tshepo Jeans
Founded in 2015 by Tshepo Mohlala, Tshepo Jeans offers a range of bespoke denim clothing and ready-to-wear products, that are hinged off the everyday wardrobe essential – jeans.
The TSHEPO logo – a three pronged crown – is inspired by the three women to have played a role in the upbringing of Tshepo: His mother Masesi, his grandmother Magriza, and his trendy aunt Takalani. Women who raised him and shaped him into the man he is. Each peak represents a women that shaped him into the man who wears the crown. With a workshop in Victoria Yards, Johannesburg and an award-winning shop in Hyde Park Corner, Tshepo jeans is an authentically South African product.
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Pictures: Supplied / Facebook / Instagram