About

I am a Senior Lecturer for the BA (Hons) Interior Design programme. 

Originally from South Africa, I have taught both in Cape Town and London before joining the University of Derby in 2017. I specialised in exhibition and stage-set design, with a specific focus towards the re-adaptation of significant historical interiors to contemporary exhibition spaces. 

I also formed part of the design team for the 2015 World Expo in Milan in 2012. Currently I am actively engaged with the Civic team at UoD, and the delivery of S.H.E.D., and serve as Design Director for Designing Dialogues. I am also a judge for the international LIV design awards, and the Academic lead for Austrian Partnerships.

Teaching responsibilities

I lead and teach design and technical modules in the Interior Design course along with Visual Communication. 

I also teach professional communication and the development of portfolio in readiness for employment. 

Professional interests

Professional interests include the design of temporary and imaginary spaces, such as theatre design, exhibition design, and conference set stages. I am interested in graphic communication be it technical or conceptual, and enjoy exploring new technologies and software packages.

Research interests

I am interested in the preservation of historical interior narratives, along with establishing new harmonious dialogues through innovative interventions. I also am passionate about performance space and the establishment of temporal-spatial narratives. 

Qualifications

• MTech Interior Design - Cape Peninsula University of Technology
• Postgraduate Certificate in Learning and Teaching - University of Derby
• BTech Interior Design - Cape Peninsula University of Technology

Recent conferences

• DECEMBER 2016 - 3RD ASIAN CONFERENCE ON THE ARTS, HUMANITIES AND SUSTAINABILITY, NAGOYA, JAPAN :Title of Paper: Sustainable ARTiculation: Adapting significant interiors to contemporary art galleries
• NOVEMBER 2014 - 5th GLOBAL CONFERENCE: PERFORMANCE, PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC: Title of Paper: Deciphering the dynamics of darkness: discovering fear and fantasy through shadows, silence and the invisible
• DECEMBER 2013 - DESIGNED ASIA CONFERENCE, HONGKONG: DIALECTS OF DESIGN EDUCATION: Exploring An Appropriate Approach To Contemporary Interiors In Historical Buildings
• SEPTEMBER 2013 - 4TH GLOBAL CONFERENCE ON PLACE AND SPACE, OXFORD UNIVERSITY, OXFORD, UK: Title of Paper: Space as a temporal-spatial event: an investigation of South African contemporary exhibition spaces in historical buildings

Experience in industry

I have worked for a number of years in the stage-set and exhibition design industry in South Africa, along with freelance interior design work in the hospitality and retail sectors.

Installations – S.H.E.D

• 2026–2027: SHED x Barnet installation
• 2023: Shedding Light on Long COVID – Design and installation
• 2021: Timberfest Workshop – Part of the workshop team talking about sustainability
• 2021: Design for Planet Workshop and Exhibition – V&A Museum, Dundee, 6–11 November
• 2021: Derby Voice Exhibition – Derby Cathedral, Derby, 16–19 July

International experience

I formed part of the design team for the 2015 World Expo in Milan, designing along with a team of other international designers many of the pavilions surrounding the Expo.

Recent publications

Published peer-reviewed conference proceedings

• 2016 – ‘Space as a temporal-spatial event: an investigation of South African contemporary exhibition spaces in historical buildings’ in Dialectics of Space and Place across Virtual and Corporeal Topographies. (eds.) June Jordaan, Carl Haddrell and Christine Alegria Inter-Disciplinary Press. Oxford, UK. pg. 307 – 316. Oxford e-book publication: ISBN 978-1-84888-510-3
• 2013 – ‘Dialects of Design Education: Exploring An Appropriate Approach To Contemporary Interiors In Historical Buildings’ in Delimitation – Creating with Constraints. (eds.) Tim Jachna, Lam Yan Yan and Sylvia Tzvetanova Yung. DesignEd Asia Conference Secretariat, Hong Kong. Published Conference Proceedings: ISBN 978-988-16721-5-5