Designers invited to The South African Mint, a wholly owned subsidiary of the South African Reserve Bank has announced a competition for the design of a new R2 circulation coin which will be issued in 2020.
Following the success of the SA25 coin series commemorating ’25 Years of South Africa’s Constitutional Democracy’, the South African Mint now invites designers to enter designs for the reverse of a new R2 coin, depicting a right from the South Africa’s Bill of Rights.
Designers are free to choose a right from the remaining 22 Bill of Rights – which did not form part of the 2019 SA25 coin range. South Africans can enter the contest by submitting their designs to the SA25 website (www.sa25.co.za) between 12 September and 31 October 2019.
The SA25 coin series was a culmination of extensive public engagement sessions with South Africans. Young people born in 1994 and after, colloquially referred to as “born-frees”, were invited to give their perspectives on the concepts of democracy, freedom and culture in South Africa as we know it today. Their perspectives, many of which were aligned to the rights enshrined in chapter 2 of the Constitution (Bill of Rights), influenced the coin themes, which in turn informed the designs of the five 2019 R2 circulations coins.
Entries close on 31 October and all submissions received will be shortlisted and tested against a range of criteria to ensure the winning design can be reproduced on metal.
“This is an equal opportunity competition for members of the public, professional artists and designers alike,” says Gerda Janse van Vuuren, acting MD of the South African Mint. “It’s not an average competition – it is an invitation to make history.”
By law, the obverses of all South African legal tender circulation coins feature the national Coat of Arms. Its design remains standard and is not part of the competition.