By Buziwe Nocuze
- Jama makes wire animals, human sculptures, tyre chairs and pallet furniture, charging between R1,500 and R12,000 after rising costs pushed his prices up from as little as R350 in 2013.
- Parent Nosakhele Nkwali says Jama’s classes are keeping kids away from gangs, and one former student now runs a tourism business in Johannesburg.
Siyanda Jama does not buy everything he needs.
He collects it. Old tyres, wooden pallets from companies, wire, trees.
In his hands, those materials become chairs, round tables, couches, sculptures of rhinos, elephants and giraffes. He has been doing this in Philippi since 2013.
It started small. His cheapest item then cost R350. The most expensive went for R2,500. Those prices are gone now.
“The cheapest item now is R1,500 and the most expensive is R12,000,” Jama said. “The increase is caused by the places we rent for our work. Going around collecting all the materials I use also costs money. I have trees that I use, and to get them I need to hire a car. With the petrol price increase, hiring a car has also gone up.”
Some customers have pushed back on the new prices. Jama is used to that conversation.
“I always give the example that the money we paid for food and transport in 2013 has doubled, and some things have increased even more,” he said.
His work has found a market among tourists, and he has a space that visitors come to. But the part of his business that drives him is the art classes he runs for more than 50 young people in Philippi. One of his students has learned to make shoes out of boxes. Another has moved to Johannesburg and now runs a business serving tourists.
Nosakhele Nkwali’s son is one of his current students. She has seen a change in him.
“We need more people like him because kids in our areas are forced to join gangs, especially those with free time on their hands,” Nkwali said.
“As parents, we support him because we see that he’s also teaching them about discipline.”
Jama’s goal has not changed since he started. He wants young people in Philippi to see that where they come from does not decide where they end up.
Pictured above: Siyanda Jama, a self-taught artist in Philippi township, Cape Town, uses art to change how people see Philippi.
Image source: Siyanda Jama
