by Phumla Mkize
The winners of the SA Student Design Competition were announced at a special event held at the Tshwane University of Technology as part of Italian Design Day 2025 celebrations.
The winning entry for the SA Student Design Competition 2025.
The competition, organised by TUT’s Department of Architecture and Industrial Design, paid tribute to Italian architect and product designer Matteo Cibic.
Cibic, who has worked with iconic brands such as Starbucks and Timberland, was the guest speaker for the Italian Design Day 2025 celebrations held at TUT on 24 February.
For the competition, South African students were tasked to study Cibic’s work and design a 6m x 4m (24m2) exhibition space celebrating South African craftsmanship. The students had to work in groups of two to five participants.
The entries were judged anonymously by a three-member panel comprising two professional architects, Mathebe Aphane and Braam de Villiers, as well as the Commercial Attaché of the Italian Embassy in Pretoria, Stefania Iuliano.
University of Free State students, Gustav Pretorius and Jeanré Erasmus, won the R20 000 cash prize sponsored by the Italian Cultural Institute. A total of 45 entries from 140 students were received from students countrywide.
Now in its second year, the competition is the brainchild of Prof Jacques Laubscher of TUT’s Department of Architecture and Industrial Design. Prof Laubscher said the competition received immediate support when first presented to the Italian Embassy and the Italian Cultural Institute in 2024. The 2025 competition brief was authored by Prof Laubscher, Marinda Bolt and Dr Tariené Gaum, both from TUT’s Department of Architecture.
The winning design by Pretorius and Erasmus, titled “Moving through the Making”, was inspired by “The Dancer” one of the well-known works by South African ceramic artist Andile Dyalvane.
According to the submission by Erasmus and Pretorius, who were assisted by Architecture Department Senior Lecturer, Martie Bitzer, “The Dancer” embodies movement and rhythm inspired by traditional Xhosa dance and the spiritual energy it carries.
Italian Design Day is a series of international events organised by Italian embassies and missions around the world. Now in its ninth year, it aims to celebrate excellence in Italian design. In South Africa, the celebrations took place in Cape Town, Pretoria and Johannesburg from 19 to 26 February.
National student competition winners, Gustav Pretorius and Jeanré Erasmus from UFS,
with Matteo Cibic and the Director of the Italian Cultural Institute, Michele Gialdroni.