Audio By Carbonatix
In 2008, Burma suffered the worst cyclone in the country’s history: 85,000 people died, and 54,000 people are still missing. Tonight, Edge Gallery, 3658 Navajo Street, is hosting a benefit for the Burmese orphans of Cyclone Nargis from 7 to 10 p.m. in conjunction with its new Children of the Storm exhibit.
Coordinator Virginia Unseld became acquainted with the cause when she heard Burmese journalist Myint Zaw talk about the cyclone while he was in Nederland. “The Burmese government didn’t let any aid in for weeks; the people that lived there on higher ground took people in and helped them,” says Unseld.
The exhibit was conceived by Zaw as a way to help raise money for 76 orphans from the Kun Chan Kone area. It displays enlarged pieces by the children, plus Zaw’s snapshots of the orphans. “The drawings depict scenes of the cyclone, with people holding onto boards and palm trees, created by children as young as six years old,” Unseld says. “To see a drawing by a ten-year-old about how he lost his family is simply touching.”
All proceeds from the exhibit will go toward the children’s school fees and to help their guardians; the Mountain Forum for Peace is covering all the overhead costs of the event. The exhibition is open to the public on Fridays from 7 to 10 p.m. and Saturdays and Sundays from 1 to 5 p.m. through January 24. For more information, call 303-477-7173 or visit www.edgeart.org.
Jan. 1-24, 2010
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