Monkey Biz

So work was slow last Friday...

Time to
Play Hookie for a few hours.

Off to see A Documentary that was showing at
The San Gabriel Bead Company.

When an Artist named Barbara Jackson

Was presented with a Beaded Bracelet
By a Woman from a South African Township.

She looked at it and asked

"Can you make A Doll ?"

The "Bigger Than Barbie Project" was born.

7 Years and 500 Artists later

Monkey Biz is creating employment and empowerment
To the Women of poverty level, HIV+ townships
In and around Cape Town.


These women are given beads for free

By Monkey Biz

Who then Buys Back
The Completed Pieces
From Each Individual Artist

And finds retailers for the products.

In the film, clips are shown
Of a nearly sold out DKNY display of the dolls
And two of the women who have had a hand in creating the dolls
See them there.

It is quite a full circle moment
To watch these women giggle behind a hand
And say "There is the one that so-and-so did , remember ?"

"Oh yes and look at this one that ....(another name) did!"

You feel you are A Part of It in some way because
In the next room is a Trunk Show
And you are going to get to see some of
These Wonderful Creations as soon as the film is over.

These pieces that are
Made by Women on
A Different Face of the Same Earth
That You are on.

And you can't help but wonder By What Grace
You are Here and They are There
....even if for a split second.

6 Million people in South Africa have AIDS.

I stopped myself as the film went on and rethought that because I tend to be numb sometimes to those numbers.

But I went over it again in my mind.

SIX MILLION

How is that even possible in the year 2007 ?

Which is Twenty Five Plus Years After we were all
Rocked with the news of this virus.

And that is just in South Africa.

After the show there were painfully straight forward questions posed.
And I was relieved to hear straight forward answers delivered back.

The Young Man giving the information
Explained how on his trip back to South Africa
He had witnessed the Monkey Biz Bead Project first hand.

He bought several dolls and figures
Planning to bring them home to his family as Gifts.


He was bothered by the fact that the women did not have a place to keep their beads and were often robbed of their hardwork and supplies.

As he was telling the story of these women to his family

The solution of a Locking Storage Container came up
And this Sparked the Idea to sell the dolls
To get a container to the township.

He made us laugh when he said he asked for all the dolls back from his family and contacted Monkey Biz.

This is the container he was able to get to them by selling those dolls.

I did buy a couple of pieces.

And so
Yes
I was A Part of It.

I stood in line looking down at the beadwork in my hands and wondering
about the other end of these creations...

And after I paid for my Lovely Things
The young man asked if he could take my picture.

What a puzzling request !

It got kind of quiet in the room...

Then he explained that they take a picture of each person
With the artwork they buy

The picture goes back To The Artist
So that they can see the full cycle of The Work They Do.

THAT made even me Smile and Pose for the camera Unshy.

I was waving from my eyes
At the Woman on the Other Side of the World
That I was now connected to.
Holding the dolls up in my hands For Her To See.

Barbara Jackson says in the film that her aim is that the dolls become
Bigger Than Barbie

Check out the Monkey Biz site and the Art Aids Art site for more information
And to see how to raise money for this project.
You can host an Art Sale in your home, studio, school, or church by deciding on a time with them and they show up with the merchandise.
How to go to Cape Town and Volunteer.
What to donate.

Like the Young Man at our show said -

Don't doubt that You can Do Something.

You can start with
One Simple Idea
In the World

Like The Container

And Make A Difference.

Now he is working on building
This Community Center
With architects from Harvard.


I know too that there is much to do
In Our Own Backyards

This was just So Inspiring

I wanted to share it.