When the COVID-19 hit my country I was left with a sense of powerlessness. A month in the crisis I set out to making face masks, partly as a form of therapy, partly as a form of rebellion against the pandemic. I’ve been sending these to my friends, acquaintances, and to whoever asks me for one, usually on the condition of that they send me a photograph of them wearing it (the photo is kept private of course). They’re made out of fabrics my mother collected all throughout my childhood. A lot of them are Nigerian, some are English, and most of them come from the famous Vlisco factory in Helmond.
Then, when it was my grandmother’s birthday on the 11th of April 2020, I decided to make her a stop motion animation where I would animate myself making a mask for her. The project took on a life of its own, and became a proper animation that shows the whole process from selecting the fabric to sending it via mail. A birthday in times of Corona. I eventually sent it to the Cinesud Quarantaine Film Stories competition, and it is now part of their showcase since July 1, 2020: https://vimeo.com/showcase/7163079/video/414887036
The pattern was taken from www.tianascloset.com. If you want to make your own, you can find it here: http://tianascloset.com/index.php/2020/03/20/a-super-easy-face-mask-pattern/
Sophie Kaars Sijpesteijn 