Ballito Umhl - NOV 2020

They are a group of kindred, creative
spirits who have come together to
form a space for artists, designers and
pretty much anyone who has the
courage to put themselves out there
and create something.
The Dala Art Bar, situated at Burnedale
in Umhlali, is, by day, a pop-up type
shop featuring local South African
talent in the form of artwork and
clothing and, by night, a vibey
outdoor bar and place to come
together and enjoy good food, music
and chilled, laid back vibes.
Started by Gustaf Swart, Anthony
Yared, Claire Howell and Caleb
Swanepoel, the vision for Dala has
evolved over the past few months
and what was originally going to be
a ‘book and pizza’ hangout, has now
become this ever-changing creative
hub.
“We want this to be a space where we
can celebrate art, clothing and people
who are brave enough to create,”
says Gustaf, who studied Geomatics
We want this to be
a space where we
can celebrate art,
clothing and people
who are brave
enough to create
at UCT and was a cartoonist for the
varsity newspaper.
Fashion designer Claire, who heads
up the fashion side of Dala, says the
ultimate goal is to uplift and give
creatives a platform from which they
can hopefully connect and grow.
The art and clothing in the store are
sourced locally and they change on a
monthly basis. They are also starting
to introduce locally-made jewellery
and other items.
“It’s more about forming relationships,
building connections and helping
each other out than it is about
competing or trying to make money,”
says Claire.
Having all been involved in events in
The locally-sourced art and clothing
change on a monthly basis
one way or another in their lives, the group have also started hosting their own
Dala events in the beautiful gardens at Burnedale. The ‘outdoor bar’ is the perfect
setting for socially-distanced mingling with delicious food, good music and a
dance floor always on the lineup! “The art is a big part of these events,” says Claire,
“people can buy items on the evenings as well.” Apart from these events, they will
also be hosting regular ladies and singles night get-togethers.
While they are currently keeping the items in store quite local, the Dala team say
they are looking forward to expanding their offering with items from other South
African and African artists and designers.
“We’ve already been approached by quite a few artists and we really want more
people to come forward and show us their work. Artists often tend to be slightly
introverted and not keen to ‘show off’ their work, which means they struggle to
put a value to it. This is a great way for them to get exposure,” says Gustaf.
The Dala Art Bar team would like to encourage local artists and fashion designers
to make contact with them.
Details: FB: dalaartbar; IG: @dala_art_bar
November 2020 Get It • Ballito Umhlanga 27