 “Monkeybiz helps make South Africa a better place for those at the bottom of the social ladder”The creative backdrop of Monkeybiz is Cape Town informal settlements, where bead artists are flourishing. Chickens, cats, dogs and other animals such as cows come and go at their leisure, seemingly oblivious to the demarcation of private and public space. Children play everywhere and staple dishes such as umnqusho (samp and beans) are often shared communally. What may seem disorderly is, in fact, a warm celebration of life!
Each artwork takes shape organically, much like the rest of life in the townships. Each artist chooses their own combination of colours, intricate zigzag designs or geometric shapes. Within the beading community, teamwork is the modus operandi, though individuality is also valued.
Community services
Product sales
Monkeybiz deliver a service to bead art communities by selling their bead art products on their behalf and thereby generating a sustainable income for the bead artists and day-today running of the project. Bead artists are paid for the bead art products they produce. Products can be bought in our online store, at retailers and via distributors or get in touch.
Soup kitchen
 Monkeybiz currently focuses on developing sustainable food-services in local communities. Since May 2006, Monkeybiz focused on setting up soup kitchens and providing food parcels to the beat art community as we believe this is a sustainable, educational contribution. The soup kitchens also ensure that more people receive a balanced meal thereby affording us the opportunity to make a larger impact. We aim to ensure that all of our members can access our soup kitchen at least once a week.
Continuation and expansion of soup kitchens services to other communities of bead artists who sell us their bead art products once a month depend to a large extent on financial donations. We need to find sponsors for this - click here for more information. If you are interested in sponsoring or making a donation a soup kitchen or food parcels, click here.
Organic gardening
We are looking to expand our community services into organic gardening to ensure that people have access to fresh fruit and vegetables.
Recycled rubber project
 Sikaa: “It’s important for me that our project is based in the township since this is the source of the community where the women feel most empowered.” Monkeybiz developed a project with women in townships using recycled rubber. It has developed a line of rubber pieces, including dolls, jewellery, picture frames and bags recycled tyres. The workshop is located in a shipping container donated by the California-based Art Aids Art (founded by Tom Harding and Dorothy Yumi Garcia) and a group.
Here Sikaa Hammer guides five artists in the production of amazing items, including a delightful doll known as Zolo – short for Mafikizolo (meaning new kids on the block). The artists acquire skills in working with metals such as recycled copper and aluminium, used in necklace and bracelet design. They also learn skills in hammering, filing and moulding, which are transferable to other artistic fields.
The project aims to develop both the skills and creative potential of township women. Monkeybiz teaches pattern-making, bead-making and traditional craft methods so that her team can develop exciting new ways of working with these skills.
Burial Society
Barbara: “People were using all their cash for funerals. “It’s been a huge aid to the Monkeybiz community.”
Due to HIV/Aids, the overwhelming costs of funerals in the Monkeybiz community has skyrocketed, which has resulted in severe financial constraints experienced by the bead art community. Monkeybiz has decided to help by launching a burial society in 2006. The burial society ensures that our community members who pass away can be buried with dignity. Monkeybiz contributes half of the cost of a funeral plan per month. This helps with funeral-related costs like travel expenses to remote areas and other associated costs, allowing the women to be covered in these unfortunate circumstances.
In the context of a collectivist African culture, women have traditionally borne the brunt of the scourges of poverty, crime, violence, minimal education and poor health services. The HIV/Aids pandemic has been inflicting tremendous hardship on women, who often have to care for ailing relatives, even those who are distantly related. Monkeybiz tries to make a difference. The burial fund is a case in point.
Nomzoxolo: “Yu! I’m very happy Monkeybiz helped me pay for this. When I first came to Cape Town I couldn’t have dreamed I would be part of a project like this. I feel very proud.”
Nomzoxolo Jongqo, who recently lost her husband through a heart attack, has become a single mother caring for five children. To have Horatius buried according to traditional ritual in the distant Xhosa heartland of the Transkei would have cost her R9,000 (roughly $1,300).
Click here to donate towards the burial society.
Financial services
Other financial services include the opening of a personal bank account for each artist. In a country where the large majority of the people don’t have access to the formal banking sector, this is no mean feat.
Completed projects
Through the years, Monkeybiz has provided support through various services to its community of bead artists, to assist them in maintaining their health, HIV/Aids and well-being. To find out more about the projects we have completed, click here.
|
