Capitec handmadeAFRICA is set to make a significant impact at Decorex Cape Town from June 5 to 8, 2025, with both its Design MRKT and the inaugural Capitec handmadeAFRICA Pavilion. This initiative aims to showcase premium Pan-African design and support the continent’s creative and entrepreneurial talent.
The Capitec handmadeAFRICA Design MRKT, returning after a successful 2024 debut, will feature over 40 visionary African brands offering a curated collection of luxury design items, including homeware, fashion, ceramics, and gourmet delights. Garreth van Niekerk, Creative Director of Capitec handmadeAFRICA, emphasizes the market’s commitment to showcasing the best of African creativity, describing it as “more textured, more curated, and more committed”. Asha Patel, Head of Brand and Communications at Capitec, highlights the bank’s dedication to supporting African creativity and empowering designers and small businesses.
A new addition this year is the “Spotlight” section within the Design MRKT, which will highlight emerging talents. Featured artists in this section include:
- Bombisa, founded by Lazi Mathebula, will launch its “Isivunguvungu” range of intricate paper sculptures exploring movement, fragility, and force, crafted from Fabriano paper using origami-inspired techniques. Bombisa’s work will be showcased at the Capitec handmadeAFRICA Pavilion.
- HausMayhem, by ceramicist Molly Roberts, known for organic, whimsical, and absurd handmade ceramic pieces.
- Callie Quilts, a collaboration between a mother and daughter, creating handcrafted, heirloom-quality quilts in Cape Town and Onrus that blend tradition with modern aesthetics.
- The Hungry Mute, offering unique brownies made with premium African ingredients.
The inaugural Capitec handmadeAFRICA Pavilion, curated by Alan Hayward and Garreth van Niekerk, will also be a highlight at Decorex Cape Town, celebrating contemporary African craft and design.
The Pavilion will feature designers whose work redefines luxury through craftsmanship, sustainability, and storytelling. Featured designers at the Pavilion include:
- Xammi Namibia Ceramics by Melody Rohlfs, whose hand-built ceramic pieces honor womanhood and the Namibian landscape.
- African Robots & SPACECRAFT | Hot Mesh Maya by Ralph Borland, showcasing an exploration of traditional street wire art expanded through digital design and collaborative processes.
- Sizwe Sama Tapestries by Sizwe Sama Sibisi, with richly layered textile works that pay tribute to single mothers, LGBTQI+ communities, and the overlooked labor of care.
- LRNCE Plates, founded by Laurence Leenaert in Marrakech, known for bold, hand-painted ceramic plates that blend abstraction with symbolism and draw from North African craft traditions.
- Roxas | Functional Sculptures, created in Morocco, blurring the line between utility and poetics with text-adorned sculptures.
- Bambizulu Chela Broom, a collaborative design object inspired by traditional Zulu brooms, featuring vivid colors and sustainably sourced materials.
- Luminaire d’Afrique | Lighting, a new platform for world-class lighting crafted on the African continent, combining centuries-old techniques with state-of-the-art manufacturing.
- Sylvester Zanoxolo Mqeku Sand Cast Ceramics, continuing his exploration into sand-cast ceramics, bridging earth science and sculptural form.
- Kind Kid Art Toys by Sanele Kwabe, presenting large-format, 3D-printed, hand chrome-plated sculptures that merge digital fabrication with local craft.
- Leatile Mosime Tswana Furniture, by a Botswana-born architect turned self-taught carpenter, whose furniture practice draws on the exposed joinery of traditional Tswana craftsmanship.
Capitec handmadeAFRICA, a flagship platform of Woke Africa, aims to connect Pan-African makers with consumers, showcasing the continent’s finest contemporary luxury design and supporting the economic sustainability of small and emerging businesses. Capitec, as South Africa’s largest retail bank by active client numbers, emphasizes its commitment to entrepreneurship and creative problem-solving, backing African designers and small businesses to thrive globally.
Featured image: Sizwe Sama Tapestries
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