The Shop Floor Project: Folk Art from South Africa
Appearing to be wrapped in African rugs or tattooed with ancient symbols, these extraordinary sculptures are hand-beaded by a co-operative of women in South Africa, who are breathing life back into the ancient craft of beading. With a sell-out exhibition at Sotheby’s Fine Art and a collection held in the Smithsonian Design Museum, these striking handmade 'folk' sculptures have gained quite a cult following.
At the very core of The Shop Floor Project is an aim to support artists and makers sustain a fair and good living, and this is why they continue to work with Monkeybiz.
They are able to support the co-operative by commissioning new works and developing larger and more unusual pieces as well as securing the best of the best pieces that arrive at the gallery from the artists' workshops. This takes time which is why they have small collection launches throughout the year, allowing them to develop the collection over 12 months.
There any many incredible things that Monkeybiz have done as a co-operative, apart from creating these works of art. One important and very practical thing the initiative have set up are individual bank accounts for all the women artists so that their payments are paid straight into their own accounts, allowing complete autonomy within the collective.
Images courtesy of Monkey Biz
Find out more:
monkeybiz.co.za
@monkeybizcape
Find out more about The Shop Floor Project:
theshopfloorproject.com
@theshopfloor