A tribute to Alan Fletcher

In this last issue of 2006 we pay special tribute to a late doyen of design – Alan Fletcher, who inspired delegates at the sixth Design Indaba Conference. Alan’s prolific and ubiquitous designs for iconic brands such as Pirelli, Polaroid and Olivetti have appeared on media ranging from calendars to books, billboards to office exteriors. They have simply become part of our everyday lives and will continue to amuse, inspire and inform us, whether we are buying a copy of Time magazine or a Penguin book. Alan died in September of cancer, at the age of 74, still immersed in numerous projects. We will miss him.

Another legacy we proudly acknowledge is the planting of 2000 trees by Design Indaba in association with Food & Trees for Africa in Mogale City, Gauteng. The planting follows our announcement in February that the 2006 and future conferences would be carbon neutral. If you’d like to find out more about how organisations and individuals can play their part in taking responsibility for the environment, see www.designindaba.com and www.trees.co.za.

Speakers have been wooed to ensure the 10th Design Indaba Conference is the best ever – our stellar line-up includes industrial music producer Brian Eno, Dutch designer Jurgen Bey, typeface designer Tobias Frere-Jones…. see www.designindaba.com for the latest additions to this list of luminaries. Price reductions are available for early bookings, academics, groups and previous attendees; and young designers aged under 25 years can attend a cut-price simulcast, which includes a one-year subscription to our magazine. The Design Indaba Expo showcase of the best of local design promises to be a shoppers’ delight; you are guaranteed to find a fabulous item that will not only contribute to promoting South African design, but could become your own personal legacy. - Judy Bryant