World design body honours Roy Clucas

Roy Clucas, Icograda Achievement Award recipient, and Jacques de Lange, president of Icograda

Clucas was nominated for the award by the think Council, voted on by the executive board of Icograda directors and is therefore recognition from all Icograda members, representing 57 countries around the world.

Easy decision

Presenting the award, Icograda President Jacques Lange said that making the decision to bestow the award was an easy one and presenting it at an event hosted by an organisation which Clucas has had close ties with since its inception was appropriate.

Icograda is the world body for professional graphic design associations and the Icograda Achievement Award may be presented to an individual, a team, or an organisation in recognition of outstanding achievement in the practice, education or promotion of graphic design as a professional activity, in recognition of exceptional work or in recognition of significant merit earned. It is the highest award bestowed.

Peer acknowledgement

"Recognition of a lifetime in pursuit of design appropriateness doesn't get better than this. The submission to Icograda for this award is an acknowledgement from my peers in the design industry of which I am extremely proud to be part," says Clucas.

During a career that began at Young Advertising in 1968, Clucas has practiced graphic design in SA, New York and Paris. He was a founding member of Grapplegroup, a studio which rose to avant-garde prominence before relocating abroad at the height of political upheaval in 1976.

Innovative and radical

In New York, his interest in fashion and music was expressed in projects that would be considered innovative or radical even today. In Paris, he was creative director on Chrysler Simca Talbots' pan-European marketing design programme and he handled projects for the likes of Christian Dior.

Back in South Africa, Clucas eventually formed Roy Clucas Design Process with two colleagues and has concentrated on brand graphics development with SAB, Nedbank, PPC Cement, Illovo Sugar, Tiger Brands and Johnnic Media, among others. A recent project has been the positioning for Johannesburg's environmental management utility, which he named Pikitup.