A South African artist is using art to bring about social change and transform the suburb of Woodstock in Cape Town with colourful murals. Ricky-Lee Gordon, known by his pseudonym Freddy Sam, is best described as a creative activist who initiates projects to inspire people and change lives. “It is my intention to explore my community […]

South African fine arts graduate Roelf Daling is this year’s winner of a prestigious national competition that encourages artists to think creatively about using cement as an artistic medium. The Pretoria Portland Cement (PPC) Young Concrete Sculptor Awards (YCSA) is a long-standing concrete sculpture event on South Africa’s art calendar. The YCSA has been running for […]

President Zuma has urged the international business community to “look towards Africa and invest in employment-creating growth”.  Zuma was addressing international businessmen, including Microsoft founder Bill Gates, during his trip to the G-20 Summit in Cannes, South of France. South Africa is the only country from the African continent in the G-20 (Group of Twenty), […]

Jewellery design students from the Durban University of Technology (DUT) have proven their creative worth by coming third in the PlatAfrica 2011 design competition. The competition, sponsored by Anglo Platinum (Amplats) in conjunction with Metal Concentrators and Johnson Matthey, culminated in an awards ceremony at Arena Royale in Fourways, Johannesburg, on 22 October 2011. The theme for this year’s […]

Eastern Cape-born Cecil Afrika, top points and try scorer in the 2010/2011 HSBC Sevens World Series, was recently named the International Rugby Board‘s (IRB) Sevens Player of the Year. The award ceremony took place at the Vektor Arena in Auckland, New Zealand on 24 October, following the successful completion of the seventh Rugby World Cup which was […]

Team South Africa put in an impressive performance at the 20th Precision Flying World Championships, recently held in North West province, demonstrating how accurately and safely local pilots can handle aircraft without the aid of modern technology. South Africa came second in the team landing category, with squad member Hans Schwebel being named the runner-up […]

Eish! South African Katherine Goldberg has pleaded guilty to making sexual advances on an Air Steward and being drunk on a Virgin flight from South Africa to Heathrow, London. Goldberg had apparently downed over a pint of whiskey, before trying to grope the flight attendant (which allegedly included grabbing his crown jewels!). The incident allegedly […]

A kind-hearted South African motor cyclist, who rescued a calf, is becoming an internet sensation after his good deed was captured on his helmet’s camera (helmet-cam)…and uploaded to the web. Johan Gray (46) was participating in the Amageza 2012 (endurance race) rally qualifier in Gauteng when he noticed a calf struggling in a steep-walled canal. […]

The 20th Precision Flying World Championships, sponsored by Brand South Africa and currently under way in North West province, will see 14 teams from around the world covering miles of unforgiving terrain to prove their unaided aviation prowess. The international teams, mainly from Europe, arrived in the country on 17 October 2011 for practice and orientation, as […]

South African production Skeem scooped the coveted Audience Choice Award at the recent Abu Dhabi Film Festival (ADFF), showing that locally directed motion pictures pose stiff competition among industry heavyweights. The festival ran from 13 October to 22 October 2011. Made by South African Tim Greene, Skeem was pitted against films with big-name directors like Martin Scorsese, Wim […]

When visual artists Hannelie Coetzee and Usha Seejarim decided to establish the Such Initiative in 2009, a participatory public art organisation, they had no idea that the project would generate so much interest. The idea came about in 2009 when Coetzee and Seejarim were sharing studio space. “We realised that if we work together we could […]

South Africans Stefanie Botha and Angela Shields have shattered all stereotypes by competing as the only all-female rally racing crew in the country for 2011, showing they’re every bit as skilful and capable as their male counterparts. The two are currently competing in the eight-round 2011 South African Rally Championship and are one of four […]

From an email doing the rounds March was when our son celebrated his 17th birthday, and we got him an iPhone. He just loved it. Who wouldn’t? I celebrated my birthday in July, and my wife made me very happy when she bought me an iPad. Our daughter’s birthday was in August so we got […]

South Africa’s Prof Malegapuru Makgoba has been elected vice-president of the International Council for Science (ICSU), one of the most prestigious international bodies of its kind in the world. “I feel humbled and inspired to be given such an opportunity,” says Makgoba, vice-chancellor of the University of KwaZulu-Natal (UKZN). The professor, who is a trained physician […]

Take a young man out of his small hometown, put him on the road and see how far he will go. Many will guess that if he has enough determination, he will go further than he could ever imagine. This can surely be said of nanotechnology expert Professor Thembela Hillie of the Council of Scientific and […]

Despite an early exit from the Rugby World Cup, the Springboks flew the South African flag high in New Zealand, says Brand South Africa CEO Miller Matola. The national rugby team arrived at OR Tambo International Airport on Monday afternoon, and were received by hundreds of supporters who welcomed them with pride and joy. Many were carrying […]

National Geographic has named South Africa’s Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden as one of the world’s best picnic spots. Kirstenbosch, which was established in 1913 to conserve and showcase the diverse flora of Southern Africa, is widely celebrated as one of the great botanic gardens of the world. Picnicking is a favourite local pastime and the tranquillity […]

South Africa’s reputation as a top performer and trend-setter in the global gardening industry was recently confirmed when the International Garden Centre Association (IGCA) appointed a South African as its president, for the first time. Nick Stodel, managing director of the well-known gardening retail group Stodels Garden Centres, has become the first person from Africa and the […]

The UK was treated to an array of Afrocentric designs when South Africa’s Lesego Malatsi showcased his collection at the London Fashion Week, which ran from 16 to 21 September 2011 at different venues across the city. Malatsi’s collection appeared at the Fashion’s Finest Show on 17 September, among work from US, UK, Nigerian and Ghanaian designers. […]

The Kiwis have revamped an old song – Living Next Door to Alice – to celebrate their hosting of the Rugby World Cup…and chances of winning the Web Ellis Cup. For those who don’t know (and some don’t) – Helen Clark is the former Prime Minister of New Zealand, Trevor Mallard is a New Zealand […]

Jislaaik. It was close. But we won today! South Africa played Wales in their opening match at the World Cup in Wellington, New Zealand…and just won by 17 to 16. The match started well. Within 4 minutes Francois Steyn had scored a conversion and Morne Steyn converted. 7-0 to the world champions in less than […]

Oh dear. South Africa’s prized vuvuzelas are not going to be trumpeting at the Rugby World Cup. New Zealand officials have announced that – along with whistles and roller blades – vuvuzelas are on the list of banned items from any World Cup venue. Other objects you may not take into the venue include umbrellas, […]

After months of toil Johannesburg has bagged the global One Young World Youth Summit in 2013, it was announced on 3 September. The city was shortlisted as a contender for the role of host together with Pittsburgh in the US, but both cities came up trumps. Pittsburgh will host the 2012 conference and Johannesburg will take […]

Now that the Springboks have departed for New Zealand to do battle at this year’s Rugby World Cup, the call has gone out to South Africans to brush up on their rendition of the national anthem. The beloved tune merges two anthems and five languages: Nkosi sikelel’ iAfrika Maluphakanyisw’ uphondo lwayo, Yizwa imithandazo yethu, Nkosi […]

When Laduma Ngxokolo, a textile graduate from the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University (NMMU), decided to create a range of men’s knitwear as part of a research project for his studies, he had no idea his love of knitting would cause such a stir in the fashion industry. “It feels like a dream some days,” Ngxokolo says […]