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Written byJosh Raynham
Meet Amy. A Cape Town digital designer and all round cool chick.
Within the world of creation, digital media has always opened up avenues for a multitude of collaborative experiences. In Cape Town we have seen a rise in digital media and the impact it has had on both the art and music scenes in and around the Mother City. From photo shoots, music events, business advertising, and more specifically, digital art and design, Cape Town has become a prolific space for creatives to boost a more focused feature on the beauty that surrounds us, as well as boosting their own brand as an artist.
There are so many young and upcoming creatives who are coming out of our Cape Town today, and so in order to create a space for collaboration and the curation of the upliftment of these various artists, the Cape Creative Collective loves to find creatives to work with. Recently we have had the pleasure of working with Amy Van Zyl, a motion and visual design artist who creates and connects with her surroundings and through the recognition of the work around her.
Amy has most recently been working with us on updating our current logo design in order to prepare for our upcoming rebrand. This journey we have taken with her has opened up a flourishing creative relationship. This collaboration we have sought has shown us a hope for the future of creatives in Cape Town. We are excited for the prospect of working with Amy again but most importantly we are excited to see what the world has in store for her.
Sitting down with Amy, I chatted to her about her craft and asked some questions to better understand the artist’s mind and the process she uses to create her works…
CCC: Give us a bit of background about you and your life:
AVZ: I was born and bred in Cape Town and grew up in the Southern Suburbs. I went to the local Primary school, which is probably where my interest in art started as I always leaned more towards art than any other subjects.
Following High school, I moved to Amsterdam to au-pair for a year. It was here that I got to do a lot of traveling which definitely had a huge impact on my life as it allowed me to see so much more of the world and to allow myself to grow on my own for a while. When I returned to Cape Town, I started my degree which, then subsequently 6 weeks later we went into full covid lockdown. This definitely led to my university experience being quite different to those before me. However, I really enjoyed university, and being able to work alongside other creatives allowed me to explore different aspects of the creative industry!
I finished up my degree at the end of 2022, expecting to launch into my career of 3D design, but how that has changed! I am super grateful for the way things have turned out. This April I started as a creative intern at the production company Half & Halve which has opened a whole new door into the creative Industry which I have loved experiencing. Aside from my internship, I have been working as a freelance motion and graphic designer.
CCC: Where did you study, and what did you get your degree in?
AVZ: I studied my undergraduate at the Cape Town Creative Academy, completing a Bachelor of Arts in Motion Design and 3D Visualisation.
CCC: Elaborate on your style and medium…
AVZ: My go-to medium is definitely 3D modelling. In university, I used the program Autodesk Maya. I have a very stylistic approach to modelling. My favourite projects to work on are characters, if you have a look at the work I’ve done, I use almost any excuse to chuck a disco ball into the scene to spice things up and give it a funky edge.
CCC: What drew you toward digital design?
AVZ: I had always enjoyed art throughout my school years, so when I decided to take art in grade 10 as one of my specialized subjects, I started taking it a bit more seriously and I really enjoyed it. I took most opportunities to sit in the art room and continue with work whenever I had a free moment at school. I leaned towards drawing in pencil and then painting in acrylic. My go to was always portraits, which I suppose lead to my love for character modeling in the 3D world.
CCC: Where do you get your inspiration from?
AVZ: I would love to say that I get my inspiration from the world around me, but I’d be lying if i said that, I get a lot of my inspiration from other artists on Instagram, Pinterest and Behance. I enjoy drawing inspiration from other work to create my own.
CCC: Some artists you look up to…
Laetita_3d on instagram – 3D
Rhymeslikedimes – 2D/3D
Melissa Mathieson – 3D
PolysbyMolly -3D
CCC: Do you feel the market for digital design in Cape Town is growing or in a place of doubt?
AVZ: I definitely think it is constantly growing but it is becoming such a saturated industry because there isn’t necessarily a need for a degree because if you can prove yourself in your portfolio people will be more willing to hire you over the fact that you have a degree.
CCC: Is there a specific goal you have as an illustrator?
AVZ: I’m not going to lie, I don’t. But I think that’s okay because I’m still kind of figuring my place in the creative world. I’ve had a taste of illustration, animation, video and film production, which has opened my eyes to so much more than just what I studied which has definitely made me want to continue exploring the creative world and see what else it has in store for me.
