Innibos has joined the Chicken Challenge fundraising art project by commissioning White River-born Nathani Lüneburg, also this year’s leading Innibos festival artist, to create a chicken in aid of the Greater Rape Intervention Project (GRIP).
The chicken created by her will form part of her solo exhibition at the Innibos Art Exhibition to be held at the Mbombela Art Gallery at the Van Riebeeck Sports Complex from 29 June to 2 July.
Lüneburg (33), an internationally-acclaimed video artist and Unisa lecturer, recently walked away with top honours at the kykNET Fiëstas awards. She won best achievement in Visual Arts for her exhibition ‘As die vlooie byt in La Land’. This award is the latest in a long line of accolades received by Lüneburg in the past year, including the 2015 KANNA award she received at the Klein Karoo National Arts Festival.
“We are very excited that Nathani has joined the Chicken Challenge. Her contribution is up there with the works of art that was commissioned by Sappi from other bespoke South African artists. Nathani’s chicken will be exhibited at the Innibos Art Exhibition as we will be able to generate even further awareness around the Greater Rape Intervention Project (GRIP) and the Chicken Challenge,” says Chicken Challenge committee member Caren Venter.
The Mbombela Art Gallery is open to the public daily from 10:00 to 17:00. Entrance is free.
After Innibos, Lüneburg’s chicken will move to The White River Gallery and will also be up for auction.
Reaching ground level
Just as Sappi Southern Africa is proud of the fact that it grows more than trees and has worked with its communities on the ground for the past 80 years to achieve this, so too has the Chicken Challenge enabled GRIP to raise awareness within various communities that it serves.
“It has been a platform for people who want to get involved in a hands-on manner. It is through the Chicken Challenge that we have seen a growing number of school kids wanting to collect care packs. The same holds true for local churches,” says Thusi.
“Making a difference in our communities is high on Sappi’s agenda and we are proud that we have been able to assist as this year’s main sponsor of the Chicken Challenge,” says Elsabe Coetzee, the Regional Communications Manager of Sappi.
Sappi’s commissioned chickens to roost in Braamfontein
Coetzee is excited to announce that when the Chicken Challenge’s online bidding comes to a close on July 11, the lucky owners of Sappi Southern Africa’s eight commissioned chickens will see their chicks head off to Sappi’s Head Office in Braamfontein, Johannesburg, where they will be exhibited later in the year before being returned to their new owners.
Sappi commissioned eight well-known artists to complete chickens – one for each of its eight decades of operation. The artists are Ayanda Nkosi, Jo Roets, Rogerio de Andrade, Niki Daly, Anton Bosch, Margy Malan, Karin Daymond and Ardmore Ceramics.
This year’s funds
With the GRIP its sole beneficiary, Chicken Challenge funding has enabled the organisation to continue reaching out to the survivors of rape and domestic violence, at a time when they are vulnerable, hurting, crying and not sure of their future.
To date, the 2016 Chicken Challenge has already raised R65 920 for GRIP.
“The funds we receive have ensured that statement taking and the medical examination happen on time, to eliminate barriers to the reporting of gender-based violence cases to the relevant authorities. GRIP is also able to make sure that 99% of reported cases in which the perpetrator is known to the survivor or has been arrested, end up in court,” says GRIP’s Licky Thusi.
“Since 2013, GRIP has been struggling to obtain enough funding to sustain its operations, so the Chicken Challenge initiative came at the right time and it has been able to close gaps in some of our administrative shortfalls,” says Thusi.
“The Chicken Challenge has also created hype for local businesses to take part in supporting the work we do. Over the past two years, we have seen a growing number of businesses choosing GRIP as part of their corporate social investment programmes and a huge number of them want to do their 67 minutes at various GRIP sites on Mandela Day,” she adds.
Proceeds from previous Chicken Challenges were used by GRIP to buy monthly care room supplies, including groceries, tea, coffee, biscuits and cleaning materials.
“In most cases, it takes a long time for the police to attend to a case, so GRIP has to make sure that people have something to eat and drink whilst waiting for services,” explains Thusi.
The organisation also purchases bread, polony and margarine for survivors coming for their trial at court care rooms, as the state only provides lunch money after the case has been heard. The majority of survivors have to arrive at court at 07h00, so it’s a long time to wait for food.
The proceeds from the 2016 Chicken Challenge will be used by GRIP to continue to cater for care room needs and it hopes to apply some of the funds to the running costs of the care room at Rob Ferreira Hospital, as it does not have a dedicated funder.
“This will include transport to survivors’ homes for field work intervention (psycho-social support), transportation of survivors to court preparation and stipends for community care workers until we manage to secure long-term funding,” says Thusi.
Bid now!
Now that you know exactly where your money will be going, it’s time to bid on the chicken of your choice!
Anyone can bid, anywhere, anytime. To view or bid on the chicken, simply go to www.chickenchallenge.co.za and click on the orange button ‘bid or browse here’. Scroll down to view the chickens, click on an item to see more information and place your bid. Bids can be placed from anywhere in the world. Bidders will receive notifications if they have been outbid or if theirs was the winning bid. Remember to share your favourites on Facebook – spread the word. Bidding closes on July 11, 2016, at 23:55.
“GRIP would like to thank the Chicken Challenge organisers for their role in ensuring the sustainability of our services within the Ehlanzeni District and invites people who would like to join hands to contact us at admin@grip.org.za,” says Thusi.
White River Gallery hours are 10:00-16:00 (weekdays and Saturdays) and 10:00-14:00 (Sundays and public holidays). For more information about the Chicken Challenge, visit www.chickenchallenge.co.za, email info@chickenchallenge.co.za or contact Reinette Fourie at 083 312 9012.
