Each orphan bracelet is handcrafted by local South African women living with HIV/AIDS. We use only lead-free copper, brass and aluminum wire, as well as recycled rubber. 100% of the proceeds go towards helping mothers and children in Africa whose lives have been severely impacted by HIV/AIDS. Wear your orphan bracelet for any occasion. They are great to stack and won’t set off airport security. DO wear them in the shower.
Please e-mail info@dolfilms.org
In 2008 the DO Ubuntu Orphan Bracelet Campaign (founded by Louise Hogarth of DOL Films) started a beading program in the KwaZulu-Natal and Transkei regions of Southern Africa.
The beaded pieces created within this program are faithful and informed replicas of traditional work documented in an out of print book “South East African Bead-work“ which researched and depicted North and South Nguni beadwork made by Zulu, Xhosa and Sotho speaking women.
The historical reference pieces were found in the Zulu kingdom and the old Colony of Natal (now known as Kwa-Zulu Natal), as well as the the Xhosa and Sotho-speaking Transkei region, and date back from 1850 to 1910.
Little was previously known about regional beadwork from this time period. However, recent efforts are being made towards sensitizing Art Historians, collectors and curators to the extraordinary breadth, complexity and beauty found in the designs of late 19th and early 20th century beadwork from South-East Africa.
Our program has been endorsed by Anthropologist of the Albany Museum Ras Mpho Jeffrey Molapisi (see his article discussing our program below)
The beaded artworks offered by DO Ubuntu are adornments made by women who learned the fine art of beading from their mothers and grandmothers.
Product photos displayed here show “Bead by Bead” created beaded pieces, contrasted with the historical 19th century beadwork they were inspired by, in adjoining images.
Please read individual captions, written by Anthropologist Ras Mpho Jeffrey Molapisi, for further detail.
If you are interested in a particular piece, please email your request to us at info@dolfilms.org. We are happy to provide further images of each product, as well as a biography of the individual beadworker who created it, upon request.
The Bead by Bead program provides employment to woman living with HIV/AIDS and 100% of the profit support food programs, sustainable gardens and school uniforms in the Eastern Cape of South Africa.
No results match your search. Try removing a few filters.