5 reasons why you should participate in Creative Week 201
Creative Week Cape Town is a fantastic event that happens every year in Cape Town running from the 14 – 22nd September. Its a fun time for all, not just creatives, artists and designers. Its a great opportunity to show off your talents and Creative Cape Town have give us 5 good reasons why we should take part and make the most of it!
Source: Creative Cape Town
Here are five good reasons to make the most of Creative Week Cape Town 2013, happening from 14 – 22 September.
Reason #1: turn the city inside out.
Creative Week Cape Town 2013 is an open call. It’s an invitation to anyone with a love of the city to get out there and do something. Paint, play, move, watch, talk, design, listen, learn or revolutionise: the choice is yours. Along the way you can also show off your talents, connect with your fellow creatives and support the creative economy of your city.
Creative Week also means the Loeries are in town. In the words of Director Andrew Human, “Not only is Creative Week a showcase of our most innovative work but it’s also a platform of inspiration – a key ingredient for creativity to blossom. Creativity is about more than pretty pictures. It’s about innovation and ideas, about doing things that haven’t been done before. Creative Week brings thousands of creative people together to connect, and also to celebrate the best work out there.”
This year, to make it easier for people creating events and for those attending them, Creative Week happenings have been broken down into seven categories: the Loeries (events which are part of the annual showcase of the region’s best in brand communication), Learn (public lectures, demonstrations, presentations and launches); See (all visual arts-related events – film screenings, street art interventions and pop-up exhibitions); Hear (music, theatre and performance events); Do (events that require active participation); Move (walking tours or cycling routes) and Play (events that defy conventional categorisation).
Reason #2: connect with your fellow creatives
After a decade spent working abroad, local writer, TEDxCapeTown team member and “curious Capetonian” Sue Northam returned to Cape Town shortly before Creative Week 2011. “It was the ideal re-introduction to the spirit and creative energy of Cape Town that I was so craving, and it was perfect timing for my return to my home town. I met fellow inspired citizens who cared about the city in a connected and very tangible way. I also explored a lot of the city on foot, and connected a lot of dots around Cape Town’s history, industry spread, City of Cape Town plans and projects.”
Around the same time, designer Lizanne Visser was also feeling the need for some inspiration: “In July 2011 I was super frustrated with not having time to pursue the things I really enjoyed and I felt stuck in a job that was growing painfully more boring every day, so I quit. Shortly after that, Creative Week happened and I literally attended everything on the programme that caught my eye. The first event was at Pedersen & Lennard’s showroom in Barrack Street where I met Ute Faure, whom I later collaborated with on a large-scale project for Cavendish Square that included work by Keri Muller, Heath Nash and Isabeau Joubert – all of whom I also met during Creative Week.
“The project started as an alternative idea to distract shoppers from inconvenient escalator and lift upgrades inside the centre,” Ute recalls. “At that time I was still in the process of setting up my new business [Green Elephant Collective, which sells lifestyle goods made locally] so being able to attend the Creative Week Cape Town 2011 ‘meet the makers’ events was the ideal platform for me to meet the people behind their design brands, talk business, plus interact with like-minded individuals in a friendly and relaxed setting. It was so cool seeing that even famous designers are actually just people and not these ‘superior beings’ I visualised before meeting them.”
Reason #3: teach and learn
For Lizanne, the magic of Creative Week also lies in the exchange of knowledge and ideas. “There’s an all-inclusive energy about how events come into being – from an industrial designer duo opening up their workshop to teach inquisitive people about Arduino; to a treasure hunt in the Fringe allowing the public to learn what buildings, history and services are right on their doorsteps. Ordinary spaces become the perfect spot for engaging and exchanging – be it an alleyway, parking lot or coffee bar.”
For emerging creatives, it is also a good time to get an insight into what it’s like to work in the creative industries. Andrew Human’s advice on how to get the most out of Creative Week in terms of the Loeries? “Get involved by participating in the student portfolio day, attending the seminar, coming along to view the work, or creating your own activations within the Creative Week structure. Follow the winners and understand what makes them stand out.”
Reason #4: get noticed
Creative Week is not only a great opportunity for networking, it can also be a showcase for both creative individuals and organisations. Gerhard Maree credits Creative Week as the point of genesis for his performing arts platform, CitySoiree. “The project was actually started because of the first Creative Week back in 2010. I mentioned to some artist friends that we should get involved and we decided to do three evenings of free concerts with a variety of performances ranging from traditional and modern classical music, to traditional Shona music, interpretative dancing, poetry, filmmaking and performance art. This led to more events of this nature and was the start of what we do now. As such, Creative Week was an important stepping stone. Our initial events were only advertised through social media and by simple word of mouth, and Creative Week gave us that necessary bit of exposure that we needed to get a response for our efforts.” Three years later, Gerhard and CitySoiree are launching a first for the South African creative scene, in the form of Troubador, a crowdfunding tool for live events.
Central city gallery Commune.1 found that Creative Week amplified the reach of their events and exhibitions. Says Leigh-Anne Niehaus, “We have found Creative Week to be an extremely helpful marketing channel, connecting us with interesting and diverse people from across the various creative industries. Last year we had Commune.1′s Birthday Group Show Salvo at that time. It is very important to us to have a special event during Creative Week. The gallery officially opened in 2011 with Christopher Swift’s show, Umlungu. Rather poetically, he will be having his second show with us during the upcoming Creative Week.”
Reason #5: come to the party
No, not just the parties that will be happening during Creative Week, but also the spirit of creativity and entrepreneurship in Cape Town itself – especially in light of the run up to Cape Town’s year as World Design Capital 2014. As Sue Northam explains it, “How we tell our own life stories is very connected to how we tell the stories about the spaces and cities we live in. I feel it is our right and responsibility as citizens of a democratic country to be curious, to explore and to connect with people and spaces around us. Creative Week is just one such catalyst that helps to open some doors, frame some experiences and connect some dots along the way of our own personal and career journeys, as well as contributing towards building and inspiring an engaged and participatory citizenship who care about the suburb, city and country where we live.”
So, become an active citizen and support and celebrate local creativity, vote with your attendance at events, or better yet, create one of your own.
How do I submit an event? In three easy steps:
- Plan: Always dreamed of turning the city into a giant playground? Want to share your knowledge while also showcasing your work? Feel the need to create some public art? Here’s your chance! Our advice to you? Think big, be playful, get others involved and most of all, think about what would most ignite your community. Send your enquiries to creative@capetownpartnership.co.za.*
- Submit: Fill in all the necessary details of your event, along with an image, on our easy-to-use form here. Then get ready to see your event appear on the Creative Week calendar. Please note that events can take up to 24 hours to appear on the calendar so please don’t leave uploading your event to the last moment. If you have any questions, please email creative@capetownpartnership.co.za.
- Share: Creative Cape Town’s large social media network and a PR and marketing campaign are used to support and promote Creative Week, but you can further amplify your event by mobilising your own networks and activating your social networking communities. Share your event with us on Facebook, join the conversation on Twitter using #CWCT2013 and look out for more information on this website.
Interested to know more? Find all these these links and more information on Creative Cape Town:
Text: Ambre Nicolson