atelier 55 celebrates 10 years of spotlighting Contemporary African Design

We are in a celebratory mood.

10 years ago today I hit ‘publish’ on my very first blog post and atelier 55 (or African Daydreams as it was known then) was born. It is hard to believe that it has been a decade of spotlighting contemporary African Design, it seems like yesterday when I started this journey and what a journey it has been.

Starting the blog was in a sense a homecoming for me. Having grown up, and studied graphic design in Harare I was surrounded by creativity at a formal level through the galleries, and art shops that filled the city, and also at an informal from the grassroots artisanal communities and roadside vendors. I didn’t realise just how much of an impact these creative expressions had on me and my identity.

Moving to the UK showed me just how much because access to the informal was not as readily available, and with contemporary African design largely invisible on the global stage it meant out of sight, out of mind for me. So before I knew it, I had lost touch with Africa’s creative inspiration. Blogging brought me back to it. Re-connecting for me, was a homecoming that was long overdue.

The past 10 years have been filled with so many wonderful highlights, and I look forward to seeing what’s next.

– Tapiwa

[Image credits: The images shown belong to atelier 55 / copyright Liz Riley Photography. If downloaded and used elsewhere please credit accordingly.]

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