Art for kids' sake

[Guest]

Art for kids' sake

Artists display works to raise money for school in Armenia. Yuroz painting to be auctioned at show opening.

 

 

By CLAUDIA PESCHIUTTA

 

GLENDALE -- These artists are in pursuit of more than just beauty.

A group of nearly 40 artists have agreed to display paintings for an exhibit opening in Glendale Thursday to help raise money for an ailing school in Armenia.

The opening of the show, which celebrates the 1,700th anniversary of Christianity in Armenia, will also feature an auction of a charcoal drawing by the Armenian artist known as Yuroz.

The piece, titled "Family," is one of the preliminary drawings Yuroz used to create "R*E*S*P*E*C*T FOR R*E*F*U*G*E*E*S," a large mural which was displayed last year in the United Nations building in New York and was also used for a U.N. stamp series. It could bring in thousands of dollars.

"I'm honored that they invited me," Yuroz said. "The cause is really excellent."

The show has grown out of an effort begun in the summer of 1998 on "Armenian National Network," a local cable television show.

Vache Mangassarian, the program's producer, said he interviewed the principal of Hovanes Shiraz No. 169 School on the outskirts of the Armenian capitol of Yerevan and decided that something needed to be done to help the students and teachers at the facility.

"It is a school in the industrial section of Yerevan and [the area] is in very bad shape because the factories don't work," Mangassarian said.

Viewer donations to the Armenian Cultural Movement, a nonprofit formed to help the school, have helped pay teachers' salaries, feed low-income students and repair the facility' heating system, he said.

"I'm really grateful to our community because I am getting so much help," Mangassarian said. "It's amazing how wonderful people are."

The opening is free and open to the public. The exhibit will also be open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday and other dates, which had not been scheduled.

Aida Gabrielyan, who organized the exhibit, said her work comes out of her love for children.

"I think everybody in the world must do for children," she said.

IF YOU GO

* WHAT: An art exhibit celebrating the 1700th anniversary of Christianity in Armenia.

* WHEN: The show's opening begins at 8 p.m. Thursday and will go on until midnight.

* WHERE: 1215 N. Central Ave.

* INFO: The event is free and open to the public. A drawing by the Armenian artist Yuroz will be auctioned at the opening. The exhibit will be open from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. on Friday and on future dates.

* CALL: To find out about future showing dates or for more information, call 242-2268.