Cape Town’s young designers, writers and illustrators are turning everyday briefs into work that carries well outside their studios. This was the year that journey came full circle as students from Red & Yellow Creative School of Business (Red & Yellow), a CHE-accredited private higher education institution and a member of Honoris United Universities, sawtheir projects recognised at the Pendoring Advertising Awards, the Loeries and the international D&AD New Blood Awards.
Together, the wins show that student talent is industry ready and already competing (and winning) on the same stages as established agencies. For the brands and creative businesses that will employ them, these awards are early proof points of the thinking, craft and collaboration that students will bring into their first roles.
At the Pendoring Advertising Awards, three BA Visual Communication students walked away with six awards that celebrated work in local language, culture and craft. Renée Pedegana’s “FUNdasie Werk” earned Craft Gold for Typography, while “Koppel Kaaps” by Caitlin Woldu and Tarryn de Wet picked up Craft Gold for Illustration and a Silver in Outdoor Media. Fellow student Emma Blomerus, together with collaborator Nkosana Nkosi, added a series of Craft Certificates for illustration and typography on “Speldekussing” and “Skoerrrt”.
A few weeks earlier at the Loeries Award Ceremony, the same energy played out on a bigger stage. Red & Yellow students left Cape Town City Hall with 13 awards: two Golds (including a Craft Gold), seven Silvers (with one Campaign Silver), three Bronzes and a Craft Certificate. The tally spans general design, typography, radio, logos and identity, integrated campaign and out-of-home – mirroring the mix of disciplines inside modern agencies and brand teams.
“These results speak to the programmes, our faculty and the industry experts who lean in to what makes Red & Yellow a launchpad for creative careers,” says Verusha Maharaj, Managing Director at Red & Yellow. “The Pendorings and Loeries recognise creative standards across Africa, and for our students, the recognition is reflective of the calibre of talent that is synonymous with our school.”
Copywriting lecturer Craig Strydom notes that for students stepping into the world of work, awards are more than a nice-to-have. “In the creative industry, awards are a kind of currency. In the job market, they carry serious weight,” he says. “What you see in these wins is the reality of working in design, marketing and more in miniature – individual skills sharpened through critique, and team projects pushed to deadline.”
The recognition extends abroad. Earlier this year, at the D&AD New Blood Awards in London, third-year Visual Communication students Jaden Thompson, Nina van Wyk, Chloe Vos and Tyla Lottering brought home a coveted Wood Pencil, one of the top honours in the global creative industry. They were the only South African entrants to win a Pencil in 2025, and Red & Yellow was the only African institution on the winners’ list.
“Getting the D&AD Pencil feels like winning a Grammy Award for creatives,” says Vos.
Receiving that recognition after all the hard work feels amazing and motivates me to keep going, knowing I’m capable.”
Cape Town’s young creatives are drawing on street-level observation, layered identities and a design culture that values craft. It shows in the way type is handled, how identity systems are built and how ideas are tightened rather than inflated.
For Cape Town, this awards season signals a strong junior pipeline made up of graduates entering agencies, corporate marketing teams, in-house studios and start-ups with work that has already been tested on a public stage.
Maharaj sees the year as a snapshot of a longer journey. “Our focus is always on the process and letting the outcomes follow,” she says. “The awards are a powerful reminder of what happens when local talent is given the space, the mentorship and the standards to grow. The industry gets stronger, and so do the careers that begin in our studios.”