"The Sri Lanka Project"

Teaching and Making Art Everywhere in Sri Lanka

In the Summers of 2005 and 2006, Eugene Lang College students and their art professor Pamela Lawton went on a New School University-sponsored trip to Sri Lanka, where they taught art to child tsunami survivors who were orphaned or homeless. The artwork in the images here was made during these workshops. The goal of the project, which was student-initiated, was to use art lessons to build skills and to facilitate the expression of loss in the aftermath of the tsunami. The outcome has been far greater than expected, including involvement on a local level in Sri Lanka with a sustainable mentoring program between professional Sri Lankan artists and the children.

The artwork seen here is available for advance bidding. It can also be seen at Sigiri Sri Lanka Restaurant, 91 First Avenue, New York, NY. Other works from the workshops will be auctioned in November of 2006 in New York City. Funds will go to support the children in their artistic development, including sustaining the art program and developing a mentoring partnership between a Sri Lankan professional artists' group and the children.

For more information on how to place bids on the artwork here, or about the auction in November, please contact Pamela Lawton, at pamela@pamelalawton.com.