English critics have some of the more quotable opinions on the subject of praise. Charles Caleb Colton said, “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery.” He also said, “There are two modes of establishing our reputation: to be praised by honest men, and to be abused by rogues.” Noel Coward, perhaps as a defence against attack by rogues, said, “I love criticism, just as long as it is unqualified praise.”

Forty South magazine has not, to my knowledge, been the subject of abuse at any time in its long life. It has had imitators and, perhaps just as revealing, it has had a steady and steadfast acceptance as part of the Tasmanian cultural fabric. 

This should be praise enough, but in 2020 Forty South magazine acquired a new look and a big brother, the Forty South digital platform – fortysouth.com.au. The rebranding and the website were launched by the Governor of Tasmania, Her Excellency Professor The Honourable Kate Warner, in an event, at The Hedberg and the Theatre Royal in Hobart, which can only be classified as glittering. 

If ever there was an opportunity to bestow praise where it is due, it is in the follow-up to that night. What follows, therefore, is in part a celebration of that watershed evening in the life of Forty South Publishing Pty Ltd, but mainly a public acclamation of the people who made it possible to expand the cultural fabric of Tasmania by helping to create our glittering new website.

Here is a roll call of the creative talent that built fortysouth.com.au, the website and the brand: Beverly Waldie (Coalface Design and Production), Cathy McAuliffe (Cathy McAuliffe Design), Kent Whitmore and Ella Michele (Forty South Publishing), Cyhtle Heal and Liam Runnells (AAP Pagemasters), Simon Crerar and Megan Brownlow (digital gurus), Raz Haroon (Gloo Advertising), Amy Rudder (grant application guru), Kate Harrison (loose ends guru) and Ivi Dodd (see below).  

And Lucinda Sharp, who permanently outshines us all. 

. . .

Ivett (Ivi) Dodd is a photographer in awe of Tasmanian light. It’s an acquired taste – eight years ago she travelled from a country town in her native Hungary to Melbourne to study art and design.

She sought a career embedded in the creation of beautiful objects in a sustainable way, and she got it – Dodd’s sustainable fashion creations have been recognised at design events in Philadelphia, New York, Berlin and Melbourne. She recently won one of the 2019 Design Tasmania Awards with her label ivimade.

As a result of her concern for consumerism’s impact on the environment, and a 10-day meditation retreat, she quit design and returned to her former passion, photography. She is also currently working on a book about Tasmanian designers and makers.

Ivi can be found on Instagram, Facebook, and online at ividoddphotography.com.