Art Exhibit Benefits TNHF

I came across TNHF through an author's blog I read occasionally. The author wrote about the sincerity of Justin and his team at TNHF and it sparked my interest. I looked up the organization's website and was excited to find a page about Art Activism, which asked artists to think of creative ways to raise awareness and funding for TNHF. As I read more, it was the their philosophy that caused me to want to get involved. Through conversations with Justin and his team, it became clear to me that they really knew the people they were helping. The people they were providing scholarships to were their friends and I found this to be incredibly refreshing. I decided to organize an art exhibit at Uncommon Grounds, a well-known restaurant, urban farm, music venue and art gallery in the Chicago area. The night of the event was crowded with individuals from the neighborhood as well as from St. Louis, New Orleans, Milwaukee and San Diego. Depending on the artist, 40% to 50 % of the proceeds from the sales of the artwork will go to support TNHF.

The artists that I asked to be a part of the exhibit were ones whose work ran parallel to the core values of TNHF. The following is my curator's statement that is posted at the exhibit. It explains a little bit about each artist and their connection to TNHF:

STEPHEN HOSKINS

Stephen's work is seeking to represent his subjects as they are changing over time and how our perceptions of others develop as we come to know them. The catalyst for his work is often the relationships he has with his friends and family member. One of TNHF's core values is developing relationships with their friends in South Africa. As stated on their website:

"These Numbers Have Faces believes that relationships can change the world. We care deeply about issues of poverty, disease, and conflict, but the driving force behind TNHF is the connection we have with our friends in South Africa…. No matter what the news media tell us, our dear friends in South Africa are not numbers. They are not color coded charts, pie graphs, or economic statistics. These Numbers Have Faces."

ANNE LINDBERG

Anne's work depicts objects that people use to transform themselves, such as books and the act of reading. TNHF believes that education is transforming the Cape Flats, changing it from an area of poverty and violence to one where individuals are engaging in their communities and empowering young people. TNHF feels an urgent need to help these townships:

"There is a lot of great work being done in South Africa, but it seemed that very few efforts were being made to empower young people through education and community reinvestment. Governments were focused on the crumbling economy, large NGO’s on South Africa’s HIV/AIDS epidemic, who would step in to provide opportunities and hope for a handful of young people in the townships??We had a responsibility then and the urgency continues to this day."

KELDA MARTENSEN

Kelda's work uses her travels as a starting off point.  She spent some time studying in South Africa and it is a reoccurring theme in her work.  She sees collage as a vehicle to address the world we live in today and as a way to communicate her worldview. I thought it was appropriate to include her work because of its social and political awareness of the cultural history of South Africa.

“TNHF was started when Justin Zoradi spent a semester studying in South Africa and became involved with a local soccer team.  When Justin returned home he could not forget about the friendships he formed with these young men. Shortly after his return to the states he started TNHF and the members of the soccer club were among the first to go to college on TNHF scholarships.“

STEPHANIE BARENZ

My work is created with the hope that it would stimulate a conversation about the sanctity of knowing one's neighbor, the importance of locality and the elevation of the commonplace to the remarkable. The idea of knowing one's neighbor can be practiced on a local or global level, which is what TNHF is doing. They have adopted the following mindset from their friends in South Africa, as they write on their website:

"In South Africa, there is a term, 'Ubuntu,' which refers to our common humanity as being beautifully bound up together….??This value system is now generally seen as the backbone of the new South Africa, a unifying belief in a society divided and ravaged by apartheid.??Ubuntu is a belief system that exists in few places outside of developing countries, as most in the West see themselves as individuals rather than as a highly interconnected community. However, it was Dr. Martin Luther King who tried to implement an Ubuntu-like ideology when he said, 'injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.' It is the spirit of Ubuntu that drives These Numbers Have Faces."

Justin told me that he was the one that was receiving an education from his friends in South Africa. Putting together this show was an education for me. It made me realize how far removed I often am from the causes I support. Justin and his team are wonderful examples of individuals who are not just putting money toward a cause.

The people they help are not just numbers, but dear friends.