Visi

we’re still at home.

As we speak, I’m typing away sitting at our living room table with my constant companion at the other end during these past lockdown months – my teenager – doing her matric schoolwork. That makes it the second issue of VISI done remotely … and it also marks the second wave of home-improvements for the Smith household. It’s been a thing, right? Sounds like everyone has spent a large part of lockdown thinking of ways to re-imagine, revamp, and redo their homes. For us, it’s mostly been about colour – an instinctive response, I guess, to the sameness of lockdown. Wave One was more of a painting and artwork thing. From a blank-canvas white, one wall got painted pink and another grey … and that resulted in a major rehang of…

contr butors

ZANELE KUMALO, WRITER, EDITOR, ENTREPRENEUR What’s your favourite memory of the house you lived in as a child? Growing up in Tongaat, adventure never lay inside the house. We made imaginary jam from the soft red rock that contoured part of the property, dodged snakes that loved the guavadilla trees we swung from in the tropical garden or escaped beyond it into the neighbouring sugar-cane fields to suck on the sweet grass. Zanele is a regular contributor to VISI and has had writing and editorial roles at a number of top South African publications. She currently runs her own content studio, What Zan Did Next whatzandidnext.com. In this issue, she introduces us to artist Pebofatso Mokoena’s work (page 128). MILA CREWE-BROWN, FREELANCE WRITER What’s your favourite memory of the house you lived in as a…

visi.co.za

ADD TO CART WE ARE TEAMING UP WITH LOCAL DESIGNERS ON A RANGE OF EXCLUSIVE COLLABS, FROM LIMITED-EDITION POUCHES TO HANDCRAFTED KEYRINGS. GET BROWSING AT SHOP.VISI.CO.ZA WIN WITH AURA INTERIORS One lucky VISI reader will win a Hanna Occasional Chair from local furniture and homeware brand Aura Furniture & Décor. This simple design, featuring an ash wood frame and rope seat, is valued at R5 995. ENTER AT VISI.CO.ZA/WIN. WE ASKED YOU ONLINE IF YOU COULD ADD ONE OF THESE SPACES TO YOUR HOME, WHICH WOULD YOU CHOOSE? More than 950 of you took our poll to let us know your top pick. Here are the results: 44% Greenhouse 21% Library 19% Wine cellar 16% Treehouse #READERLOVE Enjoying your new issue? Or did you buy something special from the ›ISI shop? We’d love you to take a pic and share it with us! Don’t…

fade to white

ICE WHITE 1. CASSINA takes its inspiration from the genius of Le Corbusier for a collection of three trays in pure, unglazed porcelain. These trays borrow some of the bas-relief symbols chosen for the walls of the buildings of Chandigarh, the city designed in the 1950s and now a UNESCO World Heritage site. Each tray – they are made by Richard Ginori – includes an original design sketched by Le Corbusier. There’s an open hand, symbolising peace, on a square tray with rounded corners, a fish on a round tray, and the movement of the sun on a rectangular tray. cassina.com Brands big on colour, stepping out in white: 2. SMEG Retro Milk Frother from the 50s Style Collection in ice white smeg.com 3. GUZZINI G-Style Electric Citrus Juicer in white.…

design deconstruction minimalism

Any discussion about Minimalism as a design movement would have to start in the East. Traditional Japanese design, with its concepts of ikebana (precise floral arrangement), wabisabi (authenticity in natural imperfection) and ma (spatial intervals), existed long before the rest of the world embraced Minimalism in the 1960s and '70s. This Western turn to simple, pared-back, contemplative forms was mostly in opposition to Abstract Expressionism, with its dramatic excess and perceived spontaneity. Minimalists – in art, music, literature, fashion and architecture – were more interested in pauses and reflection. They sought to include resolved form, calming space and considered materials rather than extra brushstrokes, layered harmonies, additional sentences, more accessories or unnecessary walls. For design, this meant clean, reductive lines, a simple colour palette and a deliberate focus on function that adds…

take five

AFRICAN GINGER Johannesburg-based illustrator and multimedia artist Seth Pimentel (aka African Ginger) uses childhood, relationships, mental illness, personal experiences and current affairs to inspire his mixed-media works. Instagram: @african_ginger ANDREA LIANG Andrea Liang – based in Cape Town – creates stylised portraits and digital illustrations inspired by nature and diversity. She simplifies her subject matter to capture key features in a simple yet striking way, adding colour to make them pop. Instagram: @andrealiangart ISHAARAH ARNOLD Graphic designer and illustrator Ishaarah Arnold is using her illustrations to inspire calm amid the chaos of the global pandemic. She’s used the time during lockdown in Cape Town to hone her skills in a new body of work ishaarah.co.za KIM BISCHOFBERGER Cape Town-based graphic designer and illustrator Kim Bischofberger makes striking digital artworks that highlight architectural angles and arches. She creates…