ABSTRACT
Gunther Kress has been a mentor and a visionary for South African educators, teachers, and researchers in the fields of language, literacy and literature, visual arts and music, as well as in some of the science disciplines. His theory, generosity of spirit, joie de vivre, criticality, and essential humanity have animated us and played a constructive role in our own processes of becoming in the post-1994 democratic period. This chapter attempts to explain the appeal and impact of his work, why it took root in South African soil, how we made it our own, and what challenges remain.
