Creatively Defiant

By Will Novosedlik

WHEN YOU COME ACROSS A DESIGN PRACTICE WITH A NAME LIKE CREATIVE DEFIANCE, YOU EXPECT TO BE CHALLENGED.  

You expect to be made uncomfortable. You expect a rebellious spirit. The designer behind the name, Chaz Maviyane-Davies, doesn’t disappoint. In fact he was once called by UK’s Design magazine ‘the guerilla of graphic design’ due to the political nature of his work. 

Originally from Zimbabwe, Chaz started using the words ‘Creative Defiance’ as the title for a talk that he gave many times across the US, and it just stuck. 

After studying design in the UK, Chaz returned to Zimbabwe just after it had officially gained independence in 1980. There were no design firms in Zimbabwe at the time, only local offices of global ad agencies, so Chaz started his own practice. He was successful in attracting both for profit and not for profit clients, but over the years was continuously frustrated by his clients’ lack of understanding and appreciation for design. 

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He was also afraid for his life. When in the 90s, President Robert Mugabe was conducting a reign of terror on his own people, Chaz remained defiant.  “Mugabe just sent out his north Korean trained guards and they killed a lot of people, stole their land and tried to keep it hush-hush. I and a lot of other people tried our best to expose it. Even now, people are trying to get to the bottom of it.”

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In 2000 there was a snap election announced with 3 weeks’ notice, giving the opposition no chance of preparing. In response, Chaz created something called the ‘graphic commentaries’. “I said that every day I'd create one image of what I see going on out there. And if you don't hear from me, you know that something has happened to me.”

“People really responded to that. Some people were even printing them out as flyers, photocopying them, and throwing them out of car windows. And that's what really got the attention of the regime. So I just kept on doing it. And then of course, the elections were rigged, and one of Mugabe’s former henchmen came to power. Friends advised me that I was in deep trouble and that I should leave, and so I did.” 

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Chaz emigrated to the US in 2001 and spent 16 years teaching at the Massachusetts College of Art and Design. He is now retired but still creatively active. When asked how he feels about living through Trump 2.0, he replies, “It’s awful what’s going on here, and unfortunately, I just feel people are normalizing it. A lot of people I know don’t make the connection between what is happening now and what happened in Europe back in the 30s. It’s like it can’t happen here. But these days I can only watch, keep making posters and banners, and attend events like the No Kings protest with likeminded friends.”

Will Novosedlik is a Toronto-based writer, designer and editor. He is known for a critical perspective on the socioeconomic impact of design, advertising and marketing.