This Interior Design student has literally raised the bar and is in line to win a hefty R50 000 prize for her creativity.
Yolandi Kotze, 24, is the only student designer in the finals of a bar design competition for Fine Brandy- a collection of excellent South African brandy products.
She now has to compete against two professional designers for the honour of having her bar made and used at Design Indaba 2014.
Yolandi’s design mimics the swirl of brandy in a glass and is a refreshing take on an ordinary square bar.
The competition was entered by all third year Interior Design students as part of a project brief and Yolandi was initially part of a group of 10 industry and student semi-finalists who had to pitch their designs to judges.
“It was exciting to work alongside professionals who are obviously used to pitching their ideas. I felt like an amateur and didn’t expect to get pass the top 10,” she says.
Senior lecturer Colleen Cocotos says her entire department is extremely proud of her for her achievement regardless of whether she wins the overall competition next year.
“The competition was of an extremely high standard. The results show that our students can compete with active industry practitioners,” she says.
As part of the top three a small prototype of her bar design will be created for display at Design Indaba and apart from the R50 000 prize money she is also in line to win a year supply of fine brandy.
Written by Lauren Kansley
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Liaises with the media and writes press releases about interesting developments at CPUT.