Meet The Design Axis, Design Week South Africa’s international advisory panel

Since launching Design Week South Africa in 2024, our team of organisers has had the privilege of connecting with inspiring local and international designers, practitioners and curators who have each contributed to shaping our vision of Design Week. These engagements have not only enriched the programme, but have also reinforced the importance of collaboration, dialogue, and shared knowledge in building a meaningful and sustainable design ecosystem.

In response to this growing community, we established The Design Axis, a structured collective that formalises this network of support and insight. The Design Axis serves as a guiding body, bringing together diverse perspectives across disciplines and geographies to help steer the direction of Design Week South Africa. It ensures that the platform remains informed by both global design conversations and local context, while continuing to evolve in a way that is relevant, inclusive and forward-thinking.

At its core, The Design Axis is designed to inform and inspire. It provides a framework for ongoing exchange, enabling contributors to share expertise, challenge ideas and help shape programming that reflects the depth and diversity of contemporary design practice. By formalising these relationships, Design Week South Africa can move beyond a once-off event model and position itselfas a year-round programme driven by collaboration and collective intelligence.

Ultimately, the creation of The Design Axis reflects a commitment to building a design platform that is grounded in community, strengthened by dialogue, and driven by a shared vision for the future of design in South Africa and beyond.

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Zanele Kumalo:

Since joining the biggest Sunday newspaper and working in various roles at the top lifestyle

publications in the country, Zanele continues to partner with premium brands to create and lead

communities built around the creative economy — art, culture and design. With a twenty-year career in media, marketing and communications that sees her growing the now six-year-old boutique content studio whatzandidnext, she works as the Johannesburg liaison for Soho House Cities

Without Houses, a global members club; the founding director of kumalo | turpin, a newly launched contemporary art space in Johannesburg; and on other projects.

Gemma Savio:

A curator of contemporary design and architecture at the National Gallery of Victoria, Gemma curates major initiatives including the MECCA x NGV Women in Design Commission, which champions leading female practitioners globally. Her recent curatorial work includes Making Good Redesigning the Everyday, Reimagining Birrarung: Design Concepts for 2070 as well as design and architecture works presented in the NGV Triennial.

Sunny Dolat:

Sunny is a curator, creative director and cultural producer working at the intersection of art, design and storytelling. His practice merges heritage and innovation, translating cultural narratives into resonant experiences that honor tradition while shaping new design futures.

Nandi Dlepu:

Johannesburg-based cultural entrepreneur, creative strategist, and curator Nandi Dlepu is the founder of Mamakashaka, a creative agency, and the driving force behind & Friends, a third-space venue that fosters connection through art, music, design and dialogue. With a career rooted in storytelling and curating experiences, Nandi has shaped platforms such as Pantone Sundays, Feel Good Series and Bloom, creating spaces where community and creativity thrive.

Ellen Keillar:

Driven by the realisation of design and craft as tools for socio-cultural, environmental and political change, Ellen has worked internationally for the past seven years in South Africa, Europe and the UK, where she practiced in curation, creative production, product and interior design. Ellen currently works as curatorial project officer for Contemporary Art, Design and Architecture at the NGV where she supports the curation and implementation of Melbourne Design Week. She studied industrial design at RMIT and Parsons and holds a Masters in Culture Criticism and Curation from Central Saint Martins.

Bielle Bellingham:

Bielle is a business and brand Director, cultural strategist and former editor whose career spans

creative direction, design journalism and lecturing in design history and critical thinking. Formerly the editor of ELLE Decoration and a contributor to international design publications, she has championed design as a force for cultural reflection and transformation. As executive creative director of Decorex Africa and 100% Design Africa, she reimagined exhibitions with bold vision.

Margot Molyneux:

Having spent 10 years building her namesake clothing studio, manufacturer and retailer of boutique collections of men's and womenswear, Margot more recently turned her attention to the world of media, specifically focusing on interiors, architecture and decor, fulfilling the role of Managing Editor of House and Leisure publication and General Manager at independent publisher LOOKBOOK

Studio. 2024 brought the launch of, Design Week South Africa, a seemingly natural career transition as she combined her love of design and storytelling with her enthusiasm for the local creative industry and its growth and development.

Roland Postma:

With the belief that building people-first cities is a necessity, not an idealistic goal, Roland has a first class Honours in Urban and Regional Planning from RMIT in Melbourne, and is currently the Managing Director at Young Urbanists NPC, where he aims to inspire a new generation of thinkers and doers around city design and management. Through co-founding the Active Mobility Forum and the public-private partnership Safe Passage Programme with the SDI Trust, he wants to prove that change is possible by providing solutions to local governments around the areas of housing, urban design and transportation.

Simone Schultz:

Following on from her position as editor-in-chief of Asia's leading design publication, Design

Anthology, Simone brings an international perspective and understanding of the global creative landscape and its evolving narratives. She has spent a decade working with stakeholders in Asia Pacific, Europe, Africa and beyond at the intersection of design and media, helping designers, architects, thought-leaders and brands communicate their stories across mediums, geographies and contexts. Her involvement in Design Week South Africa marks her renewed focus on her home continent, where she draws on her global experience to help build a window into and a bridge between Africa and the rest of the world.