Marna Hattingh is a Cape Town-based artist, active in the art world since 1999. She is also a well known children’s book illustrator. As a contemporary South African artist, Hattingh works forms part of the new school of expression. There may be elements of an African-ness in her work, particularly the use of colour, but she operates outside of any category. Her daily life experience of living in Cape Town is what informs her work. And her comments are subtly embedded in a deeply layered style. She works in a range of media including drawing, painting, print making and sculpture.

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Marmite ran a pretty rocking campaign in South Africa not too long ago revolving around the big idea that ‘If Mother didn’t tell you about Marmite, what else didn’t she tell you?’. These 365 other things were repackaged in Marmite’s distinctive product packaging with their labels changed, then despatched to influential bloggers. Exquisite execution on this one, with ad agency Machine (Big Wednesday) at the helm.

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Roger Ballen is an American geologist, living in South Africa, who is very much on top of the photography world. He directed the stunning video for Die Antwood’s I Fink U Freaky, amongst other notable achievements. Yes, he’s a true master.

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I came across the work of South African illustrator, Caroline Vos, in 2011 through her Twitter profile, @Caroline_Vos, and I absolutely cannot get enough of it. Typically featuring caricatured celebrities, her ability to distort her subject yet still maintain its integrity is truly astounding.

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For about 60 years, dental modification has been a fad amongst mixed-race Capetonians. You can frequently see these mixed-race South Africans missing four upper front teeth. A study was conducted by at the University of Cape Town, which found that fashion and peer pressure were the main reason for teeth-removal. Dentures inlaid with gold or precious stone are often worn as another fashion statement. This practice has also spawned rumors that the origin of dental modification is sexually-based. Dentures inlaid with gold or precious stone are often worn as another fashion statement. Some fads are more extreme than others, but who are we to judge? Remember Crocs? Yeah, that happened too.

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Andrew James and the Steady Tiger is a two-piece band from Cape Town who recently released their debut album, Red In Tooth And Claw. Combining folky tunes, created with lap slide guitar and drums, with great vocals and lyrics, Swansong is the dynamic first single by this duo.

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An air of culinary creativity is permeating the food scene in Cape Town, South Africa as inspired chefs reconceptualize the city’s dining culture. Chef Luke Dale-Roberts is perhaps the poster child for this movement. The mastermind behind the two-year old Test Kitchen, Dale-Roberts designed this space as a ‘creative hub’ for art, culture, and collaboration among his team of hot young rising chefs.

And as the name suggests, it was also built with the intention to inspire maximum innovation in the kitchen and for the 30-something seats in the house, that’s exactly what the menu offers. Take the pan seared lamb fillets with beetroot and Jagermeister jus, braised fennel, sweetbreads, macadamia, and cauliflower stuffing. Or, foie gras with rooibos smoked rabbit loin and leg, Jerusalem artichoke purée, and rooibos and vanilla poached quince.

Here Dale-Roberts emphasizes the trifecta of locally sourced, artisanal, organic products where possible; wines are local, beers are artisanal, and the cocktails are nearly as legendary as the food. The contemporary, industrial interior too is worth a mention in its own right but no one would fault you for making the pilgrimage just for the food.

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This is a fantastic inspiration website showcasing new work in architecture, interiors, lighting, and furniture. What is really nice is that they have taken projects from all over the world. On the Architectural link, I found some projects which were from my home county, South Africa, which was great to see on an international website.

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Two years, 6000 kilometres and 500 portraits. Stan Engelbrecht and Nic Groblerare are about to publish a series of three books of the best 165 photos and stories from their personal journey, which was initially about studying cycling and commuting in South Africa.

Bicycles in South Africa has instead turned into a hybrid watercolour, word and photography project which has observed culture, class and urban planning in South African society with bicycles being the red thread. All set to launch after their kickstarter campaign came to an overwhelming positive conclusion in early December, the three books will be published with the long-term goal to be able to assist the underprivileged cycling community through the project: be it by teaching bicycle maintenance skills or providing necessities like helmets, tires, tubes and locks.

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I recently moved back to South Africa, having spent the last seven years in the UK, and am finding the art and design community here alive and kicking. A small business making a big horse kick is the newly launched t-shirt company called Noongun.

Their illustrations combine a ‘sick’ amount of humour and attitude, plus you gotta love the Gatsby (a French loaf with hot chips, salad and oozing sauce).

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Two African kids living lonely adult lives in the city at night. Shot on location in Cape Town, South Africa.

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MissYucki is an organically evolving character based narrative conceived by Alba Poretti and Kathleen Cameron. The MissYucki project has taken its core inspiration from experiences based on the magic and mayhem of Johannesburg, South Africa, and tells stories ripe with local symbolism.

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Girls. All I really want is Girls. So, the Beastie Boys rapped it, and Cape Town’s been feeling it. Or her, rather. Meet Safiyya Bryce, aka Funafuji, a little lass with an English accent who is doing big things. Things that make us sweat and smile. Droppin’ it like the boys and throwing in some extra-cheeky femme fatale flare, she’s a ‘fourth year medical student who also plays bass-heavy, phat, wobbley dubstep muuuusak’.

It started with dance hall and reggae four years ago, and after a short interlude dedicated to long nights burning the midnight oil and text books, Funafuji is back to juggling a hybrid mix of beats ‘n books. Along with residents Binary, Fletcher and Ish, and ever- faithful hype-man, MC Blotchy Worker Boy, she started Step Up, a group project that brought the first dub step parties to Cape Town. And her ideal crowd? ‘Sunday morning at an outdoor festival dancing on the remains of their MDMA trip who just want to be massaged by slow, fat, ambient tunes’. My kinda’ crowd, too.

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Remember that grating sound that practically deafened us all during World Cup? How could we forget. Well, if you’re wondering what to do with your Vuvuzela now that the World Cup is over, WoZela has the answer: simply come up with a beneficial recycling idea, draw it, make it, film it or depict it in any other way and then submit it to their blog.

You could win R10,000 (roughly $1,500) for the best idea, as well as one of fifty exhibition spaces. Also, the most useful ideas will be handed over to underprivileged South African community craftsmen for them to generate their own revenue.

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If there was any doubt that beer is the new wine, it can now be put to rest with the introduction of this new wine packaging: wine in a beer bottle. That’s right, we’re talking about a Swartland Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot blend out of South Africa cheekily disguised within a kitschy brown beer bottle with an equally cheeky title, Bob’s Your Uncle.

The concept comes from South Africa’s unique Boer & Brit winery and is the product of design team Fanakalo. Their goal is to see wine enter the realm of the after-work brewski where people can kickback with it around the campfire and drink it straight from the bottle. The old-school gold and brown colour scheme and amusing iconography of the packaging hint at humour, encouraging drinkers to take it all a little less seriously.

And don’t worry about the unconventional stopper – the beer top seal is touted to be more effective than the cork and screw caps. So to enjoy wine without all the pretence, grab a bowl of pretzels, crack one of these bottles, and Bob’s your uncle.

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The brainchild of Harvard University engineering students Jessica Lin, Jessica Matthews, Julia Silverman, and Hemali Thakkar, sOccket is an ingenious creation that harnesses the kinetic potential of play. A soccer ball which uses inductive coil technology to capture and store energy for later use, sOccket has been provided as a solution to the day-to-day energy problems of people living in third world countries.

Tested in soccer-loving South Africa, sOccket worked effectively — allowing children to play during the day then take the ball home to light their houses, even if there was no electricity available. sOccket provides three hours of energy for around every ten minutes of play, and is an easy-to-use, low cost, eco-friendly solution to kerosene lamps, which are expensive to run and create many health problems.

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Set in South Africa and billed as Africa’s answer to City of God, Jerusalema forgoes that film’s artistic flourishes and humour, opting instead for a more intellectual storyline. While there are still plenty of shots fired and cars stolen, and a rare insight into how life is for those in South Africa’s slums, the picture is built on a few cuttingly clever core ideas.

Inspired by a true story, Lucky Kunene sets up the Hillbrow People’s Housing Trust in one of Capetown’s most dangerous areas. All the residents agree to pay him the rent, so he kicks out the dealers, pimps and prostitutes, and then holds the rent in trust until the building owners’ make necessary repairs.

The owners end up having to sell, so Lucky purchases the buildings at bargain prices. Although the residents are ecstatic, his bending of the law isn’t popular with the police and the drug dealers. This is a surprisingly powerful film, also notable for the intense and cold violence that, for these people, seems to be part of every day.

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I was recently posted to Johannesburg, South Africa as part of a splendid media trip to cover the Smirnoff Experience featuring Tiësto and BLK JKS. Naturally, the video journalist in me decided to make a mini-documentary on the whole thing. I had the privilege to interview the big Dutchman himself, as well as play with baby lion cubs, bike around Soweto village, experience nights out full of excessive liquor. One moment to look out for: a South African journalist asking Tiësto why he’s following David Guetta’s production trends. Priceless!

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I love bulbous heads and weird monsters, so South African artist Jordan Metcalf’s work is right up my alley.

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With the World Cup officially kicked off in South Africa, it’s time to celebrate the country’s bold culture, art, and style. And if you’re in Cape Town, a great spot to get down with South African talent is at Afro Café.

This funky coffee shop showcases the urban, contemporary vibe and pop art nature of African design. The Afro Café’s coffees and teas (aptly named Afro Coffee and Afro Tea) are served-up here, but if you’re taking it to go, you’ll love the retro, bold packaging, inspired by the African spirit. Fashion, accessories, and art, which also rock the all too cool-for-school vibe, are sold here too.

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