Arts and entertainment

Cell C wins international art award

25 March 2003

Cellphone operator Cell C has won an international award for its innovative "For the city" art advertising campaign in downtown Johannesburg.

The award, given by international media monitor group Mediaedge:cia, is entitled the Global Idea Award. Over 70 entries were received from around the world. The competition was launched in August 2002 by Mediaedge:cia with the aim of recognising the best media campaigns worldwide.

"We're extremely proud of this body of work, it's a world-class effort, we're very, very proud to have won," says Moira Sheridan, Media and Public Relations Manager and Acting Head of Corporate Communications at Cell C. The campaign was designed to help revitalise the inner city. Cell C launched in South Africa in November 2001 and has so far signed up more than 1.3 million subscribers.

Mediaedge:cia is a worldwide group that works with media, monitoring whether campaigns are placed with minimal impact to the environment, and using appropriate media. Local media specialist cia:notabene, which selected the downtown sites for the artworks, entered Cell C's campaign in the Global Idea competition. They have been awarded $10 000 for their winning entry.

In August 2002 Cell C commissioned 35 artists - with preference given to artists living and working in the city - who have "a work interest in the city of Johannesburg or in art for social development", to produce art for the city's buildings. Artists were told to include a C shape in their works and to include the words "for the city".

All the works were scanned and enlarged without distortion, and displayed as massive murals on the sides of buildings or in billboard-style mountings. They have transformed the CBD, bringing colour and excitement to the city. They will remain on the buildings for a year.

How the judging works
There were two stages to the judging: regional and global. In the regional section Cell C was one of 46 entries from Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Three entries from this region were selected to go through to the global judging stage. Four regions were selected to go through to the global section, with a total of 11 entries.

The judges were "unanimous" in their choice of Cell C as the overall global winner. The Cell C campaign was chosen on the basis of reflecting the company's "brand values and for its ability to get Cell C's message to the right audience in the correct environment".

Cell C has contributed funding to another art project, the JHB Art City project, which has erected 30 large artworks around the inner city buildings, making the city an art gallery with 65 artworks in total on buildings.

Cell C is also sprucing up other city buildings as part of its advertising campaign. Buildings have been painted red or white with a simple Cell C logo placed on the painted walls.

Some of the artworks on Joburg's buildings:

From the Inside: Johannes Bukhali with parents - Sue Williamson (Turbine Hall)
A Summer Day Soweto 2001 - Jurgen Schadeberg (Turbine Hall)
Xenophobia - Artist Proof Studio (Turbine Hall)
Children 2 - Lettie Gardiner (Oriental Plaza)
On His Way - Nkoali Eausibius Nawa (Florence Transition Home, Kotze Street)
The Dancers - Sandy Esau (Gandhi Square)
Jo'burg Man - Arlene Amaler-Raviv and Dale Yudelman (site to be advised)
Rienie and Petronella. Johannesburg 1950s - Karin Preller (The Fort, Constitution Hill)
Leshaba 1 - JW van Bergen (Queen Elizabeth Bridge)
Into the Light - Carl Becker
Basketball - Robin Rhode BHP Billiton SA Ltd Art Collection (Rissik Street CNA Building)
A Hawk in his Domain - Robert Hodgins Nedcor Art Collection (Investec Building, Harrison Street Bridge)
Electrification of Soweto - Eli Kobeli Absa Art Collection (Oriental Plaza)
Sunday afternoon at Initiation School - Zwelethu Mthethwa Standard Bank Art Collection (Electric Workshop)
Bar: Protect and Save - Brett Murray Sasol Art Collection (Electric Workshop)
Midnight Blue - Sam Nhlengethwa SABC Art Collection (to be advised)
Art City Logo (Harrison Street Bridge)
Mosaic Mielie - Mervyn Dowman (43 Anderson Street)
DNA - Ozor-Ejike Ezefuna 1(30 Anderson Street)
Sky'sTheLimit - Mr Gogga (148 Bree Street)
AfricanGoddess - Nicky Blumenfeld (266 Bree Street)
Cellman - Christian Nerf & Kathryn Smith (220 Commissioner Street)
Sea Moon - Usha Seejarim (217 Commissioner Street)
Purple - Phillipa de Villiers (201 Commissioner Street)
Quiet - Jennifer Ferguson (155 Commissioner Street)
Hola7 Woman - Goodness Nhlengethwa (40 Commissioner Street)
Cloud, Sexy, Connectors - David Rossouw (Bree and Market Streets)
Sound - Leslie Musikavanhu (30 End, Main Streets)
Wire Sculpture - Lucky Jiyani (187 Market Street)
Plastic Sea - David Andrew (255 Jeppe Street)
Aloe - Erika Hibbert (69 Sauer Street)
Walkie-talkie - Seopedi Motau (60 Juta Street)
Roadworks - Thulani Dube, Nicky Blumenfeld (132 Main Street)
Carving - Robert Lungupi, Brett Sher (147 Main Street)
Construction - Arthur Kunene (158 Main Street)