Considered as property, thousands of slaves were arbitrarily renamed after the calendar month in which they arrived. In partnership with the Iziko Slave Museum, we used this little known fact to create a physical calendar featuring descendants of these slaves who still carry that calendar month surname. The Slave Calendar holds the portraiture and true stories of hope as told by these living descendants.

As the project developed, it became clear that the stark, powerful portraits needed to be the focus. The design had to be restrained and simply frame each face. We selected uncoated paper stock to add sensitivity and soul to the images, and to contrast the sheer scale of the A1 prints.

The calendar is functional, but its careful hand stitching and perforated pages allow it to fulfil the dual role of a permanent piece of social commentary.

The calendar begins in May in celebration of May 8th, 1996, the day South Africa officially adopted a new constitution and – finally – freed us all.

The Slave Calendar project will be exhibited at the Iziko Slave Lodge Museum from May 2016. Invitees to the launch include the Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu, apartheid activist Albie Sachs, the press, and the extended families of those featured. It will also become a permanent part of the museum’s online presence. The calendar prints are currently being sold by the museum to raise funds. They are expected to be sold out before the end of May. It was an achievement in itself to get a highly cautious and bureaucratic institution to agree to endorse this project. But, more importantly, every participant we photographed has been inspired to find out more about their heritage.