Meet Jody Paulsen, the print designer of our South Africa collection! He’s an artist originally from Cape Town, where he still lives, works and enjoys the crazy stunning city. I met him through Helen Jennings, an expert of African fashion, arts and culture. The 31-year-old collage artist exhibited his work in numerous solo and group exhibitions all over the world. He also founded AKJP together with Keith, one of Cape Town’s hottest fashion brands. They also have a beautifully curated selection of South African fashion at their concept store AKJP COLLECTIVE.
Water Me – Installation View 2018 – SMAC gallery
Jody celebrates vivid colors and makes bold collages which made him one of the most important up-and-coming artists of his country. His process involves hand-cutting colorful paper and felt into text, shapes, patterns and various other graphic silhouettes. He arranges, composes and glues the pieces together to create a collage.
I was so triggered by this way of working that I decided to ask him to design the prints for our South Africa collection. When I saw one of his works in Zeitz MOCAA (Cape Town), I was blown away. Meeting him in real life was so exciting and fun. Besides discussing the prints for the collection, he gave a away tips about some great hotspots in Cape Town! When I asked him about the state of sustainable fashion in South Africa, he tells us it’s growing. Jody himself values sustainability: “I think it’s both admirable and necessary”.
Print Joburg – hand-cut by Jody Paulsen
Print Paarl – hand-cut by Jody Paulsen
Print Joburg – hand-cut by Jody Paulsen
Besides working on collages and prints he just art directed a shoot for an Icon Magazine Spain issue featuring South-African artists dressed in Gucci. He just opened an exhibition in SMAC, a leading contemporary art gallery in South Africa. You can view his exhibition Water Me at SMAC Johannesburg until February 9th 2019.