A few months ago I went for an art visit with the OVC at Letticia Tshalana’s house. Mama Tshalana lives in a rural area called Njijini, which is a huge pain in the ass to get to, but worth it every time. The kids are so adorable! And they love doing art projects with me.

During the last visit, I took Make-a-Plates. I didn’t really explain what they were, just gave the kids blank sheets of round paper and special pens, and told them to draw whatever they wanted. The kids are all nervous at first, but once they get going, they really loved drawing–some more abstractly than others. When I left, I explained that I needed to borrow their drawings, but would bring them back soon.

"Scribbles" by Lizeka

Make-a-Plates for everyone!

We had the finished plates sent to New York, then brought them back to Mount Frere with us, and recently we went back to Mama T’s with the final product: real plastic plates that they can eat off of forever (I still have make-a-plates from 1983, so I can vouch for their life-time warranty).

The final product.

The kids were SO excited and happy to see their drawings transformed into plates. The idea was that they’d leave them at the drop-in centre, but of course they all wanted to take their plates home–can you blam ‘em? They promised to bring the plates back every day for nutrition. We’ll see about that.

Kids love having their pictures taken, but they weren't necessarily holding a plate they'd made.

Make-a-Plates for everyone!