In April of 2007, a group of artists got together in Skagit County, WA, and put on an exhibition of art, all about PEACE. We were motivated, of course, by the invasion and continuing violent occupation of Iraq, and our frustration with the country we love failing to recognize this tragedy for the criminal enterprise we believe it to be. We all felt we had to do something, and art is what we do, so it seemed logical to mount this exhibit. We are painters, photographers, graphic artists, sculptors, poets, and musicians, and each in our way want to share these messages with our friends and neighbors.
In addition, we partnered with Mercy Corps and American Friends Service Committee, both of whom have been working in Iraq and Afghanistan since the invasions, providing medical help, food, and shelter to civilian victims in both countries, and in the case of AFSC, lobbying for Peace in Washington DC. They were invited to distribute information about their work, and take donations, at the art show. All the artists promised to donate a portion, most 50%, of the sales of any artwork to these two charities, and while sales were few, our donations were gratefully accepted.
The image above is the postcard we made to announce the event.
The following links will take you to the press release we issued to local news media;
the poster we distributed in the area;
a pdf file of the PeaceArt Book, which includes images of many of the artworks, pictures and contact information for all the artists, and photos of the event as it happened;
websites of the two charities, www.mercycorps.org and www.afsc.org ;
and some afterthoughts about our show.
If you wish to mount your own Peace Art Show, and would like some help, please contact me:
Tracy Powell, at powells@cnw.com