iPendoring 2025 Finalists

Dikanegelo tsa Pono tsa Mehutahuta ya Setso

University of Johannesburg / Johannesburg + LifaMolimi + DeirdrePretorius + RoelaHattingh

Client / Brand
Design Bites

Entry Title
Dikanegelo tsa Pono tsa Mehutahuta ya Setso

Description (View/Hide)
Design Bites is a collective publication that reimagines the design curriculum by placing culture, language, and personal stories the centre. Built around recipes contributed by students, it uses food as a universal language to spark conversation, share memories, and celebrate identity. Each dish is paired with a narrative, turning the book into more than just a recipe collection, it becomes a powerful archive of lived experience and cultural pride.

The publication shows that food is never just food, it carries family, migration, memory, and tradition. Recipes become vessels for identity, where each story behind a dish reveals something deeply personal and unique. By combining these stories into one book, Design Bites creates a collective celebration of diversity. It positions design as a practice that can embrace heritage and lived experience as part of the curriculum, rather than leaving them at the margins.

Visually, the design reflects this richness. A bold colour palette, playful illustrations, and striking typography mirror the vibrancy of the recipes and the voices behind them. Each spread is distinct, yet the collection remains cohesive, just like the mix of cultures it represents. The aim was to make the publication feel like a visual feast, layered, textured, and unapologetically bold, echoing the flavours and stories inside.

Design Bites also challenges the dominance of Eurocentric approaches to education. It demonstrates that design can be taught and understood through personal narratives, cultural pride, and storytelling, not just through traditional theory. By weaving together food, language, and design, the publication redefines what knowledge looks like in the classroom.
Ultimately, Design Bites is both a cookbook and a cultural statement. It proves that design is at its best when it is inclusive, human, and deeply connected to the stories that shape who we are.

Entered In

University of Johannesburg / Johannesburg + LifaMolimi + DeirdrePretorius + RoelaHattingh

Client / Brand
Design Bites

Entry Title
Dikanegelo tsa Pono tsa Mehutahuta ya Setso

Description (View/Hide)
Design Bites is a collective publication that reimagines the design curriculum by placing culture, language, and personal stories the centre. Built around recipes contributed by students, it uses food as a universal language to spark conversation, share memories, and celebrate identity. Each dish is paired with a narrative, turning the book into more than just a recipe collection, it becomes a powerful archive of lived experience and cultural pride.

The publication shows that food is never just food, it carries family, migration, memory, and tradition. Recipes become vessels for identity, where each story behind a dish reveals something deeply personal and unique. By combining these stories into one book, Design Bites creates a collective celebration of diversity. It positions design as a practice that can embrace heritage and lived experience as part of the curriculum, rather than leaving them at the margins.

Visually, the design reflects this richness. A bold colour palette, playful illustrations, and striking typography mirror the vibrancy of the recipes and the voices behind them. Each spread is distinct, yet the collection remains cohesive, just like the mix of cultures it represents. The aim was to make the publication feel like a visual feast, layered, textured, and unapologetically bold, echoing the flavours and stories inside.

Design Bites also challenges the dominance of Eurocentric approaches to education. It demonstrates that design can be taught and understood through personal narratives, cultural pride, and storytelling, not just through traditional theory. By weaving together food, language, and design, the publication redefines what knowledge looks like in the classroom.
Ultimately, Design Bites is both a cookbook and a cultural statement. It proves that design is at its best when it is inclusive, human, and deeply connected to the stories that shape who we are.

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