It’s hard to survive a lockdown, when all you are seeing in the news is stories of death and disease, when the flurry of WhatsApp forwards is only adding to your stress. Chlorophyll Innovation Lab, the initiators of ‘The Plated Project’, which uses art to combat hunger, thought this would be the best time to spread some hope instead.
Artists the world over will donate their works for display on the project’s Instagram page, which will be sold to help NGOs during the lockdown. In the past 10 days, 25 artists have agreed to allow the use of their work or even create fresh works, without payment.
“The idea is to create a zone of hope and look at how we can spread it,” said Chitresh Sinha, CEO of Chlorophyll Innovation Lab. Some of the themes that have emerged are to do with fighting loneliness, and of doctors as superheroes. One of the works depicts a hand supporting the world, with doctors and nurses standing around it. “It’s a visual connection to what people are experiencing right now,” said Mr. Sinha.
Chlorophyll is also in talks with international brands who have offered to partner them. The art will be printed on special-edition plates. The brand will cover the cost of production and sell the plates, using 100% of the proceeds for charity. A hotel chain, for instance, wants to raise money for providing food to the underprivileged, and is considering using the plates for redemption of loyalty points. “We’re also experimenting with the idea that if someone just loves the art, we can have them printed on postcards or just do prints,” said Mr. Sinha.
In case the talks with brands do not go through, Chlorophyll is willing to go it alone, negotiating with its vendors to subsidise the cost of production. The money that customers pay will go to charities, but the plates will be delivered to them once the lockdown lifts and shipping opens up.
The Plated Project follows Chlorophyll’s ‘21 Days of Hope’ which ran on Instagram from March 25, the day the nationwide lockdown was announced.
On each of the 21 days, stories of hope from people across the world were showcased along with charities working on the ground in the time of the pandemic. Two stories of hope around one theme — for instance, people on the frontline, farmers, mental health — were shared each day. “There are real stories, by real people, linking back to charities helping those covered in the theme,” said Mr. Sinha.
40 acts of kindness
‘The Plated Project’ has so far seen altogether 40 acts of kindness along with 40 pieces of art created by global artists being shared. “We have collaborated with artists from Russia, Korea, Poland, Japan and India, and showcased about 25 charities,” said Mr. Sinha. The project has gained up to 40,000 followers on Instagram.
In the first phase of the campaign, nearly 600 people donated to charities through various platforms.
The stories shared on Instagram have come from all over. A seven-year-old boy from the U.S. shared how he was cooking for elderly people in the time of the pandemic and even delivering them himself. People who read the post donated to his cause, and from 100 meals, he now plans to scale it up to 1,000. Another post from Scotland spoke of how people were putting up rainbows on their windows.
“What has clicked with people is that there are still those who are doing good,” said Mr. Sinha. “There’s also the hope that if one person can do something, so can they.” How much Netflix can you watch? How many news shorts can you take about the death count going up, he asked. “Something like this gives people positive content on their feed. It makes people stop and take notice. More importantly, the initiative has helped cement our collective faith in humanity,” Mr. Sinha said.