ARTHOUSE Meath has been working on an exciting new collaboration with globally renowned charity Oxfam based on the projects that the organisation run in Zambia. Funds from the will of the late Eric Phillips, grandfather of ARTHOUSE Meath artist Isobel Phillips, have supported Isobel and her fellow artists to create artwork for products which will be presented as an “ARTHOUSE Meath for OXFAM” range and sold exclusively in Oxfam’s flagship stores.
Oxfam’s Zambian projects help to develop sustainable livelihoods by educating and enabling communities in the areas of health and education, water and sanitation, and capacity to cope with disasters. The ARTHOUSE Meath artists have been working to capture the essence of all of these projects in the unique and increasingly sought after style that is their own.
The Projects
Across a number of months, the artists have been creating and developing drawings and paintings to capture the scenes that some Oxfam employees saw on a recent trip to Zambia. The projects they visited focus on helping provide people with the skills and tools they need to make money and provide for their families. Some of the projects include:
Banana Plantations
There are many issues with the banana plantations in Zambia- Monkeys steal the bananas, crocodiles lie in wait to pounce on the ladies as they gather water for their crops and elephants trample across the crops. Oxfam has provided solar powered pumps, electric fences and training on growing and selling bananas.
“Farming is happiness to me. Being able to grow crops and having the knowledge to provide for myself.” Rasca.
Dairy Project
Providing families with cows is a sustainable way of ensuring families have a continuous income. Mercy was given Dorcas the cow and managed to save enough money to build a brand new house, paid for with the milk she sold from Dorcas. Joyce and Emmanuel saved enough money from selling their cows milk to send their children to school.
Education Project
Oxfam builds modern schools to show the government great schools can be built with a small budget. These model schools are much cleaner, safer and more spacious than the current ones.
I’m 23 years old and I live in the new building at the Meath Epilepsy Trust. I’ve only been there a few months, before I lived there I was at Young Epilepsy, another college. Epilepsy has always been part of my life since I was young. I have night time seizures quite regularly and sometimes have day seizures. Epilepsy makes you very tired. I love drawing, it calms me down, makes me feel more independent and working with other artists is fun.
My favourite person in the world is my dog Juno, he is a golden Labrador and part of the family.