The East City, formerly known as District 6, is an historically significant part of town, a truly contested space and also one of Cape Town’s main design & innovation hubs.
This is the story of two very different cities, says Sune Stassen in her intro to this VoiceMap audio-walk .
There’s the high-end design of trendy spots, in amongst decrepit buildings and unkempt open land that still bares the scars of the past.
The East City, formerly known as the infamous District 6, is one of the most historically significant parts of town and a truly contested space. The only thing that is constant about this district is its inability to keep its name. Although it is currently referred to as the East City, it’s been called the “Innovation District of Cape Town” and “the Fringe” too, which generated a lot of heated debate. It’s also one of Cape Town’s main design and innovation hubs.
Cape Town came to the fore of the international design scene when it was awarded the title of World Design Capital 2014. This was Cape Town’s chance to address the legacies and imbalances of a city that was designed by the apartheid regime to exclude and segregate, only this time design will be used and highlighted as a change maker and transformer to help solve some of Cape Town’s most pressing issues.
Download the VoiceMap app and take a fascinationg tour of the area with Sune.
VoiceMap is a way of telling stories about places. It is a new medium, and while all the complicated technology that lives in your smartphone makes it possible, VoiceMap is also quite simple: it connects a voice to a location to create an experience that is uniquely immersive and intimate. VoiceMap is locally developed and offers a world class publishing platform for individualised audio-walks.
Sune is the founder of Rock City Foundation & Events and Live Design Tours. A designer and educator by choice with an entrepreneurial mind and a can-do attitude towards any design related project no matter the scale. Sune has published extensively; is the contributing editor of the current Grades 10 – 12 Design textbooks; was the contributing editor of Design>Ed, an online magazine for young and emerging designers; and also the concept and content developer of the “Making the Difference Through the Design” programme. Currently she is the programme manager of the Open Design CT Festival, a 12 day design festival in August that’s inclusive and assessable to all who wants to participate. It attracts people from various demographics and audiences to appreciate and participate in design related activities. LIVE DESIGN Tours is aiming to turn the niche and exclusive market of “design” into something more widely accessible. Design impacts on everyday life; has the power to transform lives and is seen as a powerful tool to bring about change in various sectors. This is the value and impact of design that LIVE DESIGN TOURS is interested in showcasing. There are a variety of tour options and you can even opt for an “architecture or public art route” of the city by bicycle or on foot. Live Design Tours also offers special tours for schools. INFO: Thana Nel: thana@africatravelgroup.co.za /
