Design Joburg Leaves An Impression

Thousands flocked to the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg earlier this May for Media 10’s inaugural Design Joburg, featuring Rooms on View.

Weylandts Spaces

The show’s Collaborative Roomset features were hailed a success by exhibitors and visitors alike. The concept saw the show pairing leading local interior designers and architects with an array of prominent brands to create imaginative room sets. At the helm of these innovative features were Tristan du Plessis (Studio A), Joe van Rooyen (JVR Architects), GASS Architecture Studios, Adri van Zyl (Atelier), Studium Design Office, Nthabi Taukobong (Ditau Interiors), Kimmy & Bear, Yaniv Chen (Master Studio), Kelly Adami (Copperleaf Studio), David Muirhead and Thabisa Mjo (Mash.T Design Studio). This unique approach offered a platform for several brands to share the same stage and created immersive exhibits that provided visitors with real take-home inspiration.

The Urbanative

“The biggest challenge for us was getting people to work together. The benefit of brands working with a designer or architect is that so much more will come out of the aesthetic of their products. This is a much better way of allowing the public to engage with your brand than just displaying every product that you have and replicating your showroom experience,” says Andrea Kleinloog, Creative Director of Design Joburg. The replication of conventional showrooms was replaced by exhibitors presenting their wares in seductive room sets all around the show that were enthusiastically received by a well-heeled, design loving audience. Local interior designer and owner of the long-standing Rooms on View exhibition, Sumari Krige was thrilled with the partnership following a 6-year hiatus. Instagram was abuzz with one stand in particular, that of Weylandts Spaces. Layering raw textures like stone, wood, metal and linen with rich and refined finishes, their 90-square meter space, including a kitchen, lounge and bedroom, drew visitors in with atmospheric and moody scenes.

Optima Kitchen

One of the show highlights was without doubt the Darlings exhibit where together the country’s most loved local designers were given the opportunity to shine a light on their very latest designs. Darlings saw an exciting new line up of furniture, lighting, ceramics and textiles being shown off alongside an ethereal paper installation by artist Elonah O’Neil. Some of the favourites, among others, were Haldane Martin’s new plywood Sim-Ply chairs and the African inspired, felt-backed Umqhele chair by collaborators Afrigarde and Umongo.

T & CO, Phillip Pikus and Steven Pikus Lighting

Associate sponsors Pierre Jourdan made sure that the drinks never ran dry at the leafy pitstop A Walk in the Park, where guests gathered every day to meet, greet, eat and sip on wine and bubbles under a spectacular Elonah O’Neil paper installation. Guests also got to know some of the emerging designers a little better. Detail’ 24 brought their brand of understated glamour to the fore with a range of contemporary furniture in signature jewel tones, while increasingly popular interior designer Donald Nxumalo slowed the tempo with a soft and subdued lounge setting in shades of pale pink.

DNX Interiors Donald Nxumalo

With the standard of presentations so high, both visitors and exhibitors were thrilled by what is set to become the African continent’s annual premier décor and design show.

For more visit www.designjoburg.com.