Coca-Cola building illustration
In 2012 I was hired as an art director at Draft FCB Johannesburg. This was my first gig in the big bad world of advertising. The juniors were almost immediately briefed on a proactive Valentine’s Day Coca-Cola brief. In preparation for the presentation I scamped up some ideas. Initially nothing came of that proactive brief, but what happened next still blows my mind. My concept sketch evolved digitally and soon it became the largest illustration in Johannesburg for one of the world’s most renowned brands, only 7 months later. Christine Raftopoulos, (legendary) creative director of the design department presented my drawing to the Coca-Cola client. They loved it and *POW* just like that (kind of), it found itself wrapped around the Life Centre building in central downtown Johannesburg. At the time it was dubbed the biggest illustration and sign in South Africa – at over 44m high, that’s 14 floors! In 2014 I worked on this brand again, this time with Paul Warner, while I was freelancing at Metropolitan Republic Johannesburg.
Devin Harmer’s album art
In 2016 I collaborated with Devin Harmer on his new album’s artwork. We set off into Newland’s forest to capture some magic using my Pentax film camera. This transcended into becoming the visual identity and cover imagery for the launch of his first album which was packaged as a vinyl (and some CDs of course).
Sexy Groovy Love branding
Early 2015 I was approached by the Sexy Groovy Love team to ‘take-over’ and refresh the Sexy Groovy Love branding and online digital touch points. Every outdoor party had a new theme and the venues were some of the best I’d ever been to.
Collage, saturation and colour is the name of the game, all in an attempt to capture that magical Sexy Groovy Love essence.
Rebranding Sanlam
I worked as a freelance designer for Metropolitan Republic in 2014, working closely with Christine Raftopoulos and the team to rebrand Sanlam – a brand that’s been around for over 100 years. What a massive task and months ‘living in the land of blue’. This work was entered into the 2015 Loeries and was a finalist in the corporate identity branding category. Go team!
I continued freelancing for Sanlam on a monthly retainer from September 2016 til January 2018.
Retreat Yourself branding
I’ve been collaborating with the DVM Events team to create the visual identity and website for Retreat Yourself since 2016. A conscious festival where wellness and music are fused in a way that has never been done before. It’s set in the magical Elandskloof mountains and celebrates yoga & movement, music, learning, food & drink, all with the aim of encouraging retreaters to enjoy a balanced experience, whatever that may mean to the individual. The artwork aims to echo the essence of ‘Retreat-ing’ Yourself.
Santam branding
I had a monthly retainer with Santam from September 2015 til January 2018 and during that time I created all kinds of visual communications for their brand: evolving their visual identity, creating infographics, crafting presentations, art directing for internal comms and designing brochures amongst other things.
Doowap branding
Doowap and I have been collaborating on her visual identity since 2015. As ever evolving as she is, her branding shifts and shapes too. Her eccentric-ness and colourful essence continues to inspire my creations.
Selection of logo designs
Chase Africa, Data Ninja, Eat with the Moon, halo kollektive °, Ivy Access, Limber Movement Therapy, Mikael Hanan, Mother City Night Run, Retreat Yourself, Roaming Media, Southern Grind, The Conscious Chef, The Source, Violet Tapestries, Wayfare Culture, Wood Stock Eyewear
The Source branding
The Source (a crystal water bottle elixir brand) approached me to create their visual identity and dream up illustrations to be used on their packaging. What a beautiful product!
Daena’s album art
The gifted Daena Weeks, Namibian singer and songwriter, recorded her first album titled ‘Sowing Seeds’ in early 2016. She asked Kyle Weeks (photographer) and I to collaborate on her album art. Besides being one of her more obsessed groupies, my appreciation for her music runs deep. Her songs have touched all sides of my soul and the very beautiful messages tucked into her verses sow seeds of knowledge to those who listen. The ‘Sowing Seeds’ title guided our creative direction. We found ourselves exploring the burnt fynbos and protea-scapes out in Simon’s Town in the Western Cape where Kyle took some great black and white film shots of Daena whilst I art directed. The film was scanned and we made our image selection. The next step was to figure out a way to make the very dead landscape, blossom and come alive. The intention was to visually ‘sow seeds’ and so we embarked on a mission to carefully hand paint over the black and white photograph. Dot by little dot, we grew wild flowers. We greened up stems and saturated soils – and when we were pleased, we scanned our art and designed the final layout. I so loved creating this.
