TIGER BRANDS AND WORLD-FAMOUS ARTIST COME TOGETHER FOR HERITAGE DAY CELEBRATIONS

This week dadD aka Darren got to meet the amazing Dr Esther Mahlangu, thanks to the great initiative of two brands associating themselves with South African artists.  An initiative I hope other brands will follow. 

Three of South Africa’s most-loved icons and brands came together for Heritage Day celebrations in a unique and inspiring concept that links art and food in South African heritage.

Albany Bakeries and Tastic Rice will run promotions that showcase artwork created by Dr Esther Mahlangu a world-renowned artist.

Dr Mahlangu paints in the Ndebele tradition, each stroke accurately applied with a chicken feather, a skill she learnt at the age of 10. She has gone on to achieve global recognition.

Seven of Dr Esther Mahlangu’s designs were presented to Tiger Brands, and the respective creative teams at Albany and Tastic chose designs for the Albany bread and Tastic rice packaging.

This is the third year of Albany’s involvement in Heritage Day celebrations.

THE CAMPAIGN

Running alongside the limited-edition packaging is a promotional campaign.

The Albany campaign runs from 1 September to 30 September 2018. There are instant prizes and a R5000 cash prize daily. Just purchase two Albany Superior loaves, send the unique code to the USSD number provided on the pack and stand a chance to win.

“We are delighted that bread and art can come together in this special and unique concept as two great staples of South African tradition. We recognise the importance of daily food as the life force that sustains all our people and are happy to play a role.” – Mmaphuti Rankapole,  Marketing director: Albany Bakeries Tiger Brands

 

To enter the Tastic promotion you just need to buy any Tastic 2kg parboiled rice, and enter the last 4 digits of the barcode into the USSD line *120*12215#  for a chance to win R1000 daily plus limited-edition Dr Esther Mahlangu-branded prizes. This campaign runs from 3 to 25 September 2018.

Both campaigns will be supported by in-store and social media promotions.

“It’s very exciting to have our brands associated with this global icon and be able to use Dr Mahlangu’s phenomenal artistic talent to enhance our packaging in a way that recognises South Africa’s heritage.” – Thembi Sehloho, Marketing Director: Rice and Pasta, Tiger Brands

 

NATIONAL SCHOOL OF THE ARTS

As part of the Heritage promotions, Albany and Tastic arranged for Dr Mahlangu to host a master class for Grade 11 and Grade 10 students of the National School of the Arts (NSA) on 19 September. In addition, the students were invited to submit artworks depicting what Albany and Tastic mean to them, and these will be exhibited in the foyer of Tiger Brands Head Office in Bryanston.

This will be followed by an official Heritage Day presentation with NSA Acapella singers to entertain guests in the foyer of Tiger Brands head office on 26 September. NSA is the leading art school in South Africa and is the ideal choice to showcase talent in all its forms.

Brenda Sakellarides, acting artistic director, The National School of the Arts, marketing and development unit says this is an opportunity to bridge generations – bringing together young and old in the tradition of storytelling, particularly as it relates to art and family. “It is a great honour to host Dr Esther Mahlangu at our school and our students will be inspired not only by her art but her incredible spirit.”

Still painting at age 82, Dr Mahlangu adds, “Love your culture and tradition. This art of traditional paintings is part of our culture. So art can give you bread, can give you food (rice) for you to live. And there is no greater privilege than passing on my art in the Ndebele tradition that is so much a part of the culture in South African society, which is why I want to build the IsiNdebele Art School.”

DR ESTHER MAHLANGU

Dr Esther Mahlangu was born 11 November 1935 and is a South African artist from the Ndebele nation. She is known for her bold large-scale contemporary paintings that reference her Ndebele heritage. Dr Esther Mahlangu was conferred with an honourary doctorate – Philosophiae Doctor honoris causa – by the University of Johannesburg, 9 April 2018.

Mahlangu’s art references patterns found in clothing and jewellery of the Ndebele people. The patterns she uses are typically very colourful and geometric. Her paintings are large in scale. She first gained international attention in 1989 at a European art exposition titled Magiciens de la Terre (Magicians of the World).