At Creative Boom, we aim to bring you the best of new creative work from around the world. And we try to vary things as much as possible in terms of things like discipline, genre, corporate vs individual works, and big names vs newcomers. (You can read more about our mission here). But as a small, independent publisher we can’t cover everything, nor would we want to.
So we were intrigued to hear from Deji Ajetomobi, who’s launching a magazine to specifically showcase work by African creatives and studios.
The Torsche is named after the idea of a ‘spotlight’ (adding letters from ‘Porsche’ and playing on the way ‘torch’ is pronounced in Nigeria’s Yoruba dialect). The new title seeks to address the widespread underrepresentation of African creative work, particularly in art and design. And while it only currently exists as a demo site, we’re very excited to see it develop.
So, we were keen to chat with Deji about his plans for the platform and how both African and non-African designers can get involved.
Founder’s journey
First, though, we’ll share a little about the founder himself. A chemical engineering student at Landmark University in Kwara, Nigeria, Deji discovered his passion for design back in 2017. “My creative journey began one summer afternoon when my mom asked me how I wanted to spend my summer break,” he recalls. “I picked up studying graphic design, and through YouTube, I learned a ton about Corel Draw before moving on to Adobe Suite.”
In 2020, he secured his first freelance project, designing gym wear for an overseas client. This experience opened doors to collaborations with both local and international brands and studios.
Deji’s curiosity and drive have led him to continue to expand his skill set. “In 2022, I learned Webflow development, which allows me to develop a project from strategy to web development, as I did for fintech platforms Augment Branding and Finy,” he explains.
Based in Middlesbrough, UK, Deji is pursuing opportunities to further his professional growth, including an internship as a brand designer at global payments service Wise. This combination of self-taught expertise and professional experience is serving as a solid foundation for his new publishing venture.
Spotting a gap in the market
The inspiration for The Torsche arose from Deji’s observation of a critical gap in the African creative ecosystem. Despite a rising number of exceptional creatives and studios across the world’s second most populous continent, there remains little documentation or recognition for their work.
As such, Deji recognised the need for a platform that could serve multiple purposes: documenting creative achievements, providing inspiration, improving the perceived value of design, and fostering collaboration within the industry.
Of course, social media and the wider internet both provide a means for creatives to share their work. But Deji strongly believes there’s a need for curation to separate true talent from those who are just ‘talking the talk’.