Makgahlishe T-shirt

This one-of-a-kind graphic tee was designed by the learners of Makgahlishe Primary School + Studio Recess designers. When you wear this Makgahlishe t-shirt you’re not only empowering 600 learners but you’re continuing to grow dreams with Dreamfields in rural communities throughout South Africa. Go head, represent Makgahlishe + become a part of our team.

 MAKGAHLISHE PRIMARY SCHOOL 
Named after the current chief’s grandfather, Makgahlishe has 600 learners, 35% of which are orphans and 20 educators. While under-funded & focused on fundamentals, Makgahlishe was one of very few school with a creative presence; with beautiful drawings on the school buildings to lift the spirits of their learners.
School Motto: “Unity is Strength”
Mission: As a school we shall offer excellent education to our learners through working together with stakeholders and effective teaching.

 TEAM LOGO 
+ Studio Recess / design house
Nic Taylor is an award-winning designer who has guided the creative process for years. A graduate of the School of Visual Arts, he began his career with an internship at Chermayeff & Geismar, then moved to an Art Director position with Publicis Groupe, then Senior Art Director at Regan Books and finished his agency work with his role as Creative Director at G2/Grey. Nic has built exhibits, written and art directed television commercials, shot large-scale print campaigns, and designed mass-market book jackets, branding and packaging. He is a tenured professor at the School of Visual Arts, teaching Visual Communication in Graphic Design and Typography at the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th year levels, and has been an adviser at Project M, a design organization focused on socio-cultural responsibility and the development of young designers.

Reginald Dankwa is a young American designer of Ghanaian descent, committed to making design that matters. His work up until this point is concerned with visual communication on a large scale, more specifically branding and editorial design. While in school, Reginald got a taste of industry life at Draft FCB, New York Times Magazine, and Études Studio, a French brand that produces menswear, publishes books, and provides creative services.

Manoil Tzonev is a Bulgarian-American designer, who strives to communicate conscious, meaningful design. While still in school Manoil worked in various big agencies and smaller studios, focusing on branding, editorial, print and web design. Most recently he was a Junior Designer at the NYC based studio Runner Collective, where he created visual content and merchandise for the band Kings of Leon. Currently, both make up Studio Recess - a studio that believes transparency in design is fun; positioning itself in the grey-area between work & play.

artist’s note
Makgahlishe is a school that knows the importance of sticking together. The community relies on each other to prosper and it’s especially important to know the value of teamwork in a sport like soccer. This mark we’re creating is focusing on the strength and resilience of these children despite the conditions they face in a poverty-stricken neighborhood. For them, Unity is Strength but they each have to believe they have a strong core already.

We wanted this mark to achieve several things. First, to represent the school’s iconography of a Lion and a Sun. Second, to execute it in a way that took inspiration from the drawings that the Makgahlishe students created during their VC+ workshops. And third was to tie in the brand (so to speak) — so the Ms, which are the first letter of the name “Makgahlishe.”