Penduka Namibia

The responsibilities of innovating a production process

StartArt Gallery

Using technology to grow participation

In this episode I wanted to explore how small scale producers of visual artworks were experiencing the challenges of covid.

Penduka Namibia is a non-profit organization that supports the livelihoods of over 500 Namibian women who make a living through designing, developing and manufacturing the products that are sold through the proprietary distribution models that Penduka has established since its founding in 1992. The lack of orders therefore has an adverse effect on the organizations abilities to operate efficiently. The day we filmed was the day after Victoria and the other employees were informed of future retrenchments. The mood was downcast and heavy. Follow Penduka Namibia on instagram

StartArt Gallery closed their physical gallery in 2017, went digital and have never turned back. I was curious to find out from Gina how much of an advantage a digitally native business model was. Not all that much she told me. The gallery has cancelled and postponed several in-person exhibitions and activations due to covid. I asked Gina to share a curators perspective of the public art on display in the city centre where the covid mural is a must-see. Follow StartArt online Gallery on instagram.

Making

I am a crafts person. Bringing different elements and materials together with a hot glue gun is a thrill I live for. Needless to say that I do not call myself a visual artist.

What went right? I gained a broader understanding of a small-scale manufacturers workflow.

What I liked? Learning about the lifecycle of a public art mural.

What I learnt? To value the small things that I make.

What to improve upon? making better visual artworks.