TheCapeRobyn – aka Robyn Y Cohen -has over twenty years of experience in print media as an arts and lifestyle writer. She relishes the global audience of the exciting digital media world and is loving sharing stories from Cape Town, the African continent and elsewhere, with readers of TheCapeRobyn magazine: Arts. Destinations. Style.

TheCapeRobyn’s reach includes – stage, film, music, food, drink, travel, books, mind, body and soul – the creative, innovative, engaging, and exciting. [Note: There are many Robyn Cohens – just as there are numerous John Smiths. This Robyn Cohen has a middle name beginning with a Y. Let’s go with TheCapeRobyn). TheCapeRobyn motto: Go while you can.

Cohen has a MA in fine art from The University of Witwatersrand. Her little book, Nearly Finished- a guide to home renovation, was published in 2006, by Double Storey (ex-imprint of Juta). Nearly Finished was based on a series of humorous articles, the Story of My House, which she was commissioned to write for the Cape Times, documenting the renovation of the family’s home. The book was translated into Afrikaans as Amper Klaar – ‘n gids vir huisvernuwing.

Robyn Y Cohen is a member of SAFREA- The South African Freelancers Association http://www.safrea.co.za/.

TheCapeRobyn: Content is curated and experiential. No copying and pasting of releases. The website is not a portal for “everything”. It is a magazine with reviews, interviews, features.

For diary snippets, see the story function on the TheCapeRobyn on Instagram.

Promotions on Facebook and website– clearly marked as sponsored.

Platform and reach: South Africa, Africa, Africa and global – arts, destinations, style.

 TheCapeRobyn platforms:

• website: https://thecaperobyn.co.za
• Facebook public page: https://www.facebook.com/thecaperobyn/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thecaperobyn/
• Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheCapeRobyn
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robyn-y-cohen-0732565

Logo design and branding consultant – TheCapeRobyn

Carol-Anne Lipshitz of CasDesign branding and design studio is responsible for TheCapeRobyn’s distinctive bright red logo with bird as centrepiece. In taking TheCapeRobyn from Facebook public page to website, the intention was to invoke up a sense of browsing through a vibrant magazine.

CasDesign’s brief was to design a logo which dovetails with the ethos of TheCapeRobyn: Arts. Destination. Style. The bird  in the logo is inspired by the Cape robin-chata bird which is found in Africa – from the South Sudan to South Africa. As its name suggests, the Cape robin-chat – loves chatting, chirping and singing. TheCapeRobyn – aka Robyn Y Cohen is certainly no chanteuse or songster but she is constantly chirping and foraging for interesting stories. The Cape robin-chat is highly adaptable and is at home in nature and pops up in city gardens and in suburbs. TheCapeRobyn is a city and surf gal but is also highly adaptable and loves travelling. The Cape robin-chat bird image is emblematic of TheCapeRobyn – that we can fly and: Go while we can.

After hours of discussion and research, CasDesign came up with the design for the logo which conjures up a sense of an African bird through the use of broad strokes which alludes to woodcut print-making (think John Muafangejo, Dan Rakgoathe, CecilSkotnes). CasDesign also incorporated a strip of celluloid film on the TheCapeRobyn logo banner to allude to film and the landscape of the performing arts world.

It is easy to fiddle with a website name and use a font and colour to cook up a logo. It is not easy to produce a custom logo which signifies brand identity and which interfaces with the energy and spirit of the site. It wasn’t about any red. It was about a particular red. Every line and curve mattered. Coupled with that, there was the process of transferring the logo design from page to TheCapeRobyn digital platforms – first on Facebook and then on the magazine website and making sure that the design was sized correctly for mobile and desktop devices. This can be challenging but CasDesign came up triumphs and was infinitely patient with endless changes and adjustments. There is no doubt that this comes from her three decades plus experience in the field of graphic design.

Back in the day, when she was newly hatched graphic designer (with a diploma in Graphic Design and Book Illustration from The Foundation School of Art, Cape Town), she worked free-hand. In that pre-digital era of typesetting, Letraset, scalpels (yes, knives!) and paste-up, she gained experience as a junior designer at Rose Dendy Young Design studio, where she learned how to use a Bromide camera (a large format camera which transferred images onto bromide film and transparencies; housed in its own large darkroom) and Chromatec (creating bespoke transfers in Pantone spot colours – providing mock-up options). Once a design was approved and the selection was made, it went through Finished Artists and then onto production houses.  Lithographic positives and a final proof of the would be signed off and sent to print.What a schlep. Lipshitz subsequently worked at Gelderblom Hunter, one of the first design studios with an Apple Mac in Cape Town. The Mac was huge. It was grey. It had a stiffy drive; no CD drive. She learned how to use programmes such as Aldus Freehand, QuarkXPress and Photoshop.

Now Lipshitz uses a creative suite; Adobe Photoshop, Adobe InDesign and Adobe Illustrator andcan roll out the whole design process on digital platforms. For printing of business cards, stickers, a printing facility is still required.

The graphic design process has been fast tracked by technology, but there is no replacement for the human eye in imbuing design with verve and dynamism. One needs to be able to sit with the designer and say: “No, move the Cape slightly over and The a bit up and sharpen this and round that and edge it over a teensy bit there. Can you make that part smaller and that bigger …” Here is to CasDesign – an old school designer using contemporary design tools.

CasDesign clients include Woolworths, I&J and Blistex.

Contact Carol-Anne Lipshitz

E-mail: carolanne.artist@gmail.com

CasDesign offers complete design packages – print and digital and graphic design. If you want to place an advert on TheCapeRobyn, call the studio for an eye-catching ad.

Web Design & Development – TheCapeRobyn

Tasneem Abrahams of Digital Engage – a digital marketing consultancy – has facilitated the exciting transition of TheCapeRobyn from Facebook public arts page into magazine website. Her brief was to create a visually inviting art and lifestyle magazine – rather than a generic (boring) blog. Publishing on the web is very different to print media. The vision of TheCapeRobyn is to create a platform with content which will not be stale, after publication and will continue to draw readers to the site. Abrahams was fully invested in this process – designing and developing the site map – for easy and accessible navigation. She also brought a great eye in terms of design, layout and linking the website to TheCapeRobyn social media platforms.

Abrahams is a veritable Renaissance Creative. She operates the Daily Hustle Podcast, “a platform that celebrates the everyday hustle of everyday people”.  She believes that everyone has a story and that we should celebrate the individuals in our midst and their quest to live “a life of purpose.”

See www.thedailyhustleonline.com – subscribe and listen.

In addition to her work in the digital arena as website developer and podcast host, the multi-talented and skilled Abrahams works extensively in special needs education. She has a Bachelor of Science in Occupational Therapy (UCT), practicing in the field of mental health, neuro-rehabilitation, community development and special education. Her OT skills are used every day at her job at a special needs school in Johannesburg. Involved in several community projects, we give a shout-out to her awesome work with Jozi4Autism – a non-profit advocacy group which “raises awareness about autism in the City of Johannesburg and promotes equal access to services for families”  from under-resourced communities.

See https://jozi4autism.org.za/about-us/

That is not all. Abrahams also launched Private Practice Growth, Inc., a subsidiary of Digital Engage, which encompasses an online community, The Private Practice Growth Club, and an online learning platform called the Private Practice Growth Academy, providing tips, tools and support for health professionals wanting to start or grow a private practice.

See https://privatepracticegrowthclub.co.za

And to top that, Abrahams is the mom of four young children.

Back to TheCapeRobyn and Digital Engage’s role in developing the site. In embarking on this journey, we found many digital creators lacking in creativity and unconcerned about details like colour, logo placing etc. TheCapeRobyn is delighted with Digital Engage’s work and looks forward to continued association with Abrahams. Digital Engage recently introduced (March 2020) a new service – website and branding packages for bloggers and influencers, called the Websites for Bloggers Buffet. You choose from a buffet of set blog designs and brand palettes, and Digital Engage executes the setup and content upload at a fixed and affordable price.

Contact Digital Engage for 2020 rates at hello@digitalengage.co.za

Follow Abrahams’s adventures on IG: @tasabrahams

TheCapeRobyn gratitude corner  – show some love (please)

There is no charge to read TheCapeRobyn. There are no paywalls. However, we would like to make this a viable platform. You can show some love by advertising (banner ads etc), signing up for Promotion @TheCapeRobyn. The easy-peasy solution is to hit the Donate Button, here and pay-it-forward –any amount.