Our first ever Ask Me Anything series, launched in collaboration with Design Week South Africa, has come to an end with our final edition of four taking place on Sunday, 23 March. On every Sunday in March, during the Young Urbanists’ weekly Open Streets Activation on Bree Street, we hosted a different leader in South Africa’s creative industry on our store’s bench and offered aspiring creatives and interested individuals the opportunity to book a free one-on-one consultation to ask them anything they wanted. What would usually be an intimidating prospect was transformed into a comfortable experience. A relaxed, jovial feeling filled the air on a car-less Bree Street while a range of activities unfolded around our stoep, where our special guests gave their complete attention to whoever booked a slot to speak to them. Fashion designer Lukhanyo Mdingi, photographer Gabrielle Kannemeyer, art director and stylist Chloe Andrea Welgemoed and artist and designer Koooooos (AKA Koos Groenewald) each took their turn in the hotseat at 120 Bree Street. We checked in on our special guests to hear what the initiative taught them about the upcoming generation of creative professionals and about themselves.
The aim of the Ask Me Anything initiative was to give aspiring creatives the opportunity to draw on the experience and knowledge of leaders in various creative fields and niches. Since Duck Duck Goose is a central meeting point for creatives in Cape Town, we wanted to create a safe and unintimidating space for fostering an integrated community between those interested in fashion and design and the people who have shaped the modern creative landscape in South Africa. The initiative offered people a direct channel of communication with established professionals who would otherwise seem out of reach in the context of what many call a “gatekept” industry. Sitting down for a one-on-one chat with someone who probably overcame similar issues to what aspiring creatives are facing is certainly more productive than seeking answers from looking at their work online.
As Koooooos told us, “We’re all dealing with the same shit, over and over.” The designer said that most of the advice people were seeking was concerned with getting themselves out there and making a name for themselves. “The answer was mostly just do things, try things, put it out there and see what hits… Do some collabs and passion projects with friends, make the kind of work you want to be doing more of and put that out there.” Of course, each person’s questions depended on their individual challenges and aspirations, but the golden thread linking each of the guests’ advice was the age-old “just do it”. Gabi mentioned that she was impressed by attendees’ pro-activeness in shaping their futures: “They’re at a pivotal stage of change, willing to push past their comfort zones and take risks. It was inspiring to see their openness to learning, adapting and seeking out guidance to move forward”, she said. Chloe said that “the main question [was] about how to make being creative a paying job. Once you’ve found what you want to do (which in itself is a challenge), how do you find a future in that?” Starting is often the hardest part, because it’s difficult to know where to start. People obviously have ideas, but sometimes it just takes the affirmation of an industry pro who’s dealt with the same shit, over and over, to give the confidence to push through that initial barrier of uncertainty.
Much like Koos, Lukhanyo also mentioned the importance of community and collaboration in his exchanges: “My approach [to answering questions] was a hybrid of both inspirational yet practical – the creatives needed to understand that there is a marriage between creativity, community-building and business and these three aspects are needed in order to have a level of ‘success’.” The AMA initiative is rooted in community-building. Apart from the line of communication we aimed to open between different generations of creative professionals, we encouraged attendees to hang out before and after their consultations to start relationships with those who came with the same intentions. In the context of an online world, the hyper-visibility of individual success that slaps you across the face every time you open Instagram can feel like an intimidating benchmark for young and aspiring creatives to live up to. The many minds and hands behind a successful project or campaign often remain hidden. Lukhanyo continued, saying: “It was important for me to reiterate that all our trajectories are different and that the comparison game can be harsh on one’s spirit of growth. The most consistent advice that I extended is that it’s important to have a communal and collaborative approach in creating stories, building relationships and sharing to eliminate the colonial approach of withholding information. We all can have a seat at the table.” My hope is that attendees left their sessions with a drive to start the projects they’ve been ruminating on, and to get in touch with their friends or peers to help out.
As the first initiative of its kind in this city, it was interesting to hear how powerful and novel the experience was for our guests as well. “It felt full circle to see my own ambitions in others. The fire that keeps burning never stops and I think it created awareness for me around celebrating balance. I think we spend so much time on the chase that we forget to live”, said Chloe. While some young creatives feel frustrated by gatekeeping and the lack of access to advice from industry leaders, the equally beneficial impact that these consultations had on our special guests illuminates how the South African creative landscape can do with more of these kinds of informal conversational environments. “The conversations were all so intimate and candid, but I do wish more people could have heard what was discussed”, said Koos. He’s right – more people need access to the gems that were shared during these consultations. However, we tried to stay away from the speaker-audience dynamic that we’re used to seeing at talks and panel discussions, which the local creative industry does well to organise on a regular basis, but maintains the dialogical distance between experienced and aspiring creatives. Instead, our intention was to promote true and meaningful inter-personal contact. Gabi really cut to heart of the initiative when she said how good it felt “to give back to those who are in the early stages of their own paths. More than anything, it reinforced the value of mentorship and how important it is to create spaces for open dialogue in creative industries.”
We’d like to extend our appreciation to everyone who took part in the debut of the Ask Me Anything initiative, including our guests, those who RSVP’ed for consultations, and the people who simply came to hang out. Special thanks to Design Week South Africa, our collaborator on this project, to DOPE, who sponsored beverages for all four of the sessions, and to Lebo Kekana who allowed us to use Protoscape, his collaborative installation with N I S H design studio, as seating to facilitate the days’ meaningful conversations. Lastly, thank you to David Brits, who hand-drew each of the four posters. This first Ask Me Anything series has been a great success, and we are excited for its return to facilitate more impactful dialogues in the future.
