Imagining
Mozambique comes to NYC October 26th - November 1st
NEW YORK: The traveling art show collective, Imagining Mozambique, a
fundraising drive for ASEM, a non-profit organization that helps the
children and orphans of Mozambique makes its North American premiere at the
Mass Market Gallery.
Colonization, civil war, natural disaster and economic instability have
plagued Mozambique over the last 25 years, which has led to widespread
uncertainty for tomorrow's youth. What will the Mozambican children of today
create to change their destiny? What will peace and prosperity look like in
their 21st century? Will the future be bright? Or will the cycle of despair
continue?
Imagining Mozambique, the brainchild of Interactive Producer Jamie Kim, was
to gather together a group of internationally renowned artists (Parra,
Superdeux, Florence Manlik, Happy Centro, Marcos Chin - to name a few) to
create thought-provoking art inspired by the Mozambican children and bring
attention to their day-to-day plight for survival and change.
Jamie says, "I had always been very interested in non-profit work. I found
the right fit in 2004 when a group of like-minded people, who grew to know
about ASEM, began ASEM Canada in Toronto as an official non-profit
organization. Since relocating to Amsterdam two years ago, and still sitting
on the Board of Directors, I had been working on an exhibition idea that
would raise awareness in the local community. The idea was to create a
bespoke event that would be fun, relevant and meaningful to the people of
Amsterdam and in return, the local community would give to the children who
need is so very badly in Mozambique. I began to put pen to paper in December
2008 and quickly realized Imagining Mozambique,. I had nothing to lose by
contacting artists around the world and the worst that could happen was
getting 'no' as a response. Luckily for me, those who said yes, outnumbered
the rest.
I'm very excited to have had so many great people around me including Rae
Anne Ferrera at 'Boards and the guys over at Mass Market who quickly tapped
into their extensive NYC network to support the project. Rae Ann put me in
contact with Mass Market who were immediately taken by the idea and donated
their gallery space on Rivington Street. My many colleagues at W+K NYC have
also been tremendously generous in lending me their time and expertise to
make this happen and I am confident that the energy to keep this a
travelling exhibit will continue into 2010."
The collection is comprised of artists from the disciplines of graphic
design, illustration, photography and painting.
Entry to the Mass Market Gallery is free and open to the public from 12-8pm
from 26 October-1 November.
All artist prints are available for purchase at the Mass Market Gallery from
October 22 - November 1.
More
information about the project and ASEM can be found
on the website: www.imaginingmozambique.com.
The website is designed and developed by the Amsterdam
based "Cartelle". The site's soundtrack is written
and contributed by D.M. Smith. A special feature of
the site lets visitors create their own wish with
which they can express a personalized message of optimism
and hope to the children of Mozambique.
After the tenure at the Mass Market Gallery, the show will move to the
Wieden+Kennedy Portland offices for an exhibition in January 2010.
Money
raised through sale of the artwork goes directly to
ASEM-Association en faveur de l'Enfance Mozambiquaine.
Over the past 17 years, ASEM has offered Mozambican
children an alternative to living life in the streets,
abandonment and rejection from society. The ASEM charity
has established various centers to provide shelter,
education, and food to thousands of children. Cultural
and sports activities are organized and play an important
role in the psychological, emotional and physical
rehabilitation of the children.
AIDS
is a major development challenge for the country where
a million and a half people have HIV or AIDS.
Mozambique
has been hailed by international lenders as a model
reformer that has grown its economy at an average
rate of 7 percent to 8 percent over the past decade.
Health
Minister Paulo Ivo Garrido told reporters poor transport
in the vast impoverished country and a shortage of
staff and hospitals had hampered the government's
roll-out program.
"These
are issues the government is grappling with,"
he added.
Mozambique
would appoint provincial coordinators for AIDS programs
in all its 11 regions as it battled to combat AIDS,
tuberculosis and malaria -- its key killers.
Garrido
told Reuters last year he expected at least 6,000
health technicians to be dead from AIDS by 2010, critically
hurting the government's plans to expand health and
AIDS-care services.
Only
1 percent of some 70,000 Mozambique children eligible
for anti-retroviral treatment have been put on the
drugs, according to the United Nations children's
agency UNICEF.
