Co-Founder of legendary South African agency
TBWAHuntLascaris to be recognized for a career of world-class
creative excellence and contributions to society
NEW
YORK, Aug. 24, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- John Hunt, Global Creative Chair at
TBWAWorldwide, co-founder of the internationally recognized South
African agency TBWAHuntLascaris, and award-winning author and
playwright, will be inducted into The One Club for Creativity's
Creative Hall of Fame on October 27th
in New York.
The Creative Hall of Fame has a rich heritage of honoring the
lifetime achievements of creative luminaries in all forms of
advertising and design, beginning with the induction of
Leo Burnett in 1961 and TBWAMedia
Arts Lab's Lee Clow in 1997. Hunt's
fellow inductees in the class of 2022 are Nancy Vonk, Janet
Kestin, Carol H. Williams,
Joe Duffy and Cheryl D. Miller. The black-tie Creative Hall of
Fame induction ceremony, which is a fundraising gala to support The
One Club's many global DE&I programs, will take place at Tisch
Skylights at The Shed, Hudson Yards in New York.
"John Hunt is most deserving of
this honor," said Kevin Swanepoel,
CEO, The One Club. "He has been a champion of creativity for
Africa and has used creativity to
build iconic brands while advancing democracy, human rights, and
human welfare. He is the very definition of a creative giant. John
joins a group of inductees who have influenced culture, uplifted
underrepresented groups, and inspired the next generation of
creative thinkers and doers. We are honored to celebrate him
alongside our other inductees in October."
In 1983, Hunt and his partner Reg
Lascaris founded HuntLascaris, with the ambition to be the
first world-class agency out of Africa. With the mantra "Life's too short to
be mediocre," they created bold and breakthrough work that could
only be from Africa, but routinely
gained worldwide attention and recognition. Clients included BMW,
Nando's, South African Airways, and The Zimbabwean's "Trillion
Dollar Campaign," which raised awareness of the newspaper and the
corruption within the Mugabe regime around the world, and became
the most awarded campaign of all time, after sweeping the awards at
The One Show, Cannes Lions, The Clio Awards, ADC and D&AD.
Shortly after its founding, HuntLascaris sought an international
partner to accelerate its growth. TBWA was the ideal match, with
its high creative standards, entrepreneurial spirit and founder
culture, and a decades long partnership was born.
The agency has continued to create bold, award-winning work,
including "Breaking Ballet" for the Joburg Ballet, which brought
the art form to an entirely new generation of fans, and earned a
Gold Lion and South Africa's
first-ever Data Lion at Cannes;
and "Blame No More" which won five Cannes Lions in 2020, including
a Gold and South Africa's
first-ever Glass Lion.
Proof that advertising can make the world a better place, Hunt
was intimately involved in Nelson
Mandela's first ANC election campaign in 1993. Although
harrowing at the time, this unique moment in history ushered
South Africa into the light of
democracy. He was also involved in creating iconic work for the
First HIV AIDS campaign in South
Africa. TBWAHuntLascaris was named Agency of the Century in
2000, and Agency of the Decade in 2010, the same year that work for
The Zimbabwean Newspaper gained worldwide recognition.
"I'm deeply honored to receive this recognition from The One
Show," said Hunt. "In truth, though, it's a team award. It belongs
just as much to all the co-workers, clients and organizations
I've worked with over the years. Ultimately, it's their trust that
turned seemingly impossible ideas into reality. No doubt,
creativity can make the world a better place. But it's so much more
powerful when played as a team sport."
Troy Ruhanen, CEO, TBWAWorldwide,
added, "I have such tremendous respect for John, not just for what
he has achieved, but more importantly, how he has gone about it. He
inspires us, continues to be our creative north star, and has given
so much to our company, industry and society. John's integrity,
generosity and talent are matched only by his enormous heart. We
are immensely proud to see him join the Creative Hall of Fame."
In 2003, Hunt moved to TBWA's New
York headquarters to assume the role of Worldwide Creative
Director, becoming a creative compass for the agency collective,
helping to reshape the TBWA collective to think less about ads and
more about ideas. Upon arriving in New
York, Hunt founded the TBWA Young Bloods creative residency
program, and a year later began the "SWAT" initiative, a program
that ensures a global answer to the creative questions often asked
by worldwide clients. In 2021, TBWA re-introduced the Young Bloods
program with a focus on promising talent from historically
underrepresented groups. Hunt returned to South Africa in 2006 to continue his Worldwide
role from Johannesburg.
In 1996 he was inducted into the South African Advertising Hall
of Fame and, a year later, received the Financial Mail's Long Term
Achievement Award. Hunt has served as juror across every major
industry awards show, including as President of the Cannes Film,
Press & Outdoor Advertising Festival in 2005. He has also found
time to write a number of television and theatre plays and books.
He was named South African Playwright of the Year for Vid Alex, a play that condemned censorship
during the apartheid years, and has also published a book, The Art
of the Idea: And How It Can Change Your Life.
About TBWAWorldwide
TBWA is The Disruption® Company.
We use creativity to help businesses challenge the status quo and
capture an unfair share of the future. Named one of the World's
Most Innovative Companies by Fast Company in 2021, 2020 and 2019,
and Adweek's 2021 and 2018 Global Agency of the Year, we are a
creative company that uses trademarked Disruption® methodologies to
help businesses address their challenges and achieve transformative
growth. Our collective has 10,000+ creative minds in 41 countries,
and also includes brands such as Auditoire, Digital Arts Network
(DAN), eg+ worldwide, GMR, The Integer Group®, TBWAMedia Arts Lab,
TBWAWorldHealth and TRO. Global clients include adidas, Apple,
Gatorade, Henkel, Hilton Hotels, McDonald's, Nissan and Singapore
Airlines. Follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn and Instagram, and
like us on Facebook. TBWA is part of Omnicom Group.
Contacts: Anaka Kobzev,
Global Head of Communications, TBWA, +1-917-362-5845,
anaka.kobzev@tbwaworld.com; Mary
Gearing, Deputy Managing Director, Magna Carta, +27 (0) 11 784 2598,
mary.gearing@magna-carta.co.za
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SOURCE TBWAWorldwide