Opening Day: Hope Away From Home
Young refugee artists cut the ribbon on their new Art Education Center. In celebration and support, The Creative Convergence launches its GiveBackStack feature: the Refugee Artist Support Circle.
Today is a special day!
It’s the Ribbon Cutting and Grand Opening Day for the Nakivale Young Talent Community’s new Art Education Center. The Center is a new home for this youth-led, refugee-led arts collective and education program for children and youth located in the Nakivale Refugee Settlement in Uganda that serves 65+ children and youth. It was built in part by the artists themselves and ushered along to “near” completion with funds I earned this summer teaching art to children in my community. While it’s still not done (visit this link to help me help them complete it), it’s functional enough to open today!
To celebrate this auspicious day, I’m also officially launching the “Refugee Artist Support Circle”, a special section of The Creative Convergence devoted exclusively to supporting these young refugee artists’ journey and their free art education programming. As a GiveBackStack (check out the GiveBackStack Directory for more details), The Creative Convergence will use 100% of your paid subscription for the sole benefit of supporting the NYTC artists: paints, canvasses, paper, brunches and even a modest lunch program. All content here will remain free but by becoming a paid Refugee Artist Support Circle subscriber, you not only show your support for the artists but receive fun and artful perks. This initiative is dedicated to uplifting and empowering these talented individuals, ensuring they have the resources and community they need to thrive.
For more information, visit the Refugee Artist Support Circle landing page or go directly to the “Join the Circle” post which includes a gorgeous video with original music by pianist Antoinette
of International of the artists in action.
Art Education Center Opening Day
What a joyous event! There was a ribbon cutting, dignitaries, speakers, cake cutting, a Young Africa fashion show (the youngest was maybe 5?), a dance troupe recital, and a tour of the Art Center for friends and families.
These young artists - who fled to Uganda’s Nakivale Refugee Settlement from their home countries of Democratic Republic of Congo, Burundi, Rwanda and other African countries (some with parents, some without, and some alone) - have built a new home for their artistic journey.
Today’s opening day is an incredibly profound and inspiring moment for them, their families, and their community. The Art Center is not only an art education center, it’s a resource for the community. And as founder Akon Deograce put it: the Center is our “hope away from home.”
The full celebration was captured on Zoom and streamed on FaceBook live. And, is now on YouTube (all 2 hours of it) for you to enjoy.
A Short History of the NYTC Arts Education Center
In 2021, 15 young refugee artists (all under 20 at the time) formed an artist collective and started a free arts program to teach art to children and youth in the Nakivale Refugee Settlement in Uganda. For more about the organization, check out the interview I did with their founder Akon Deograce for RainMakers & ChangeMakers Substack.
Up until now, the artists have been operating in a makeshift sticks-and-tin-roof shelter built off the back of a community member’s home.
A recent electrical fire shocked, literally and figuratively, the artists into speeding up the work on their Art Education Center which they started in Fall 2023 but could not complete due to lack of funds.
After the electrical fire, it was clear the artists needed to move and I was out of money. But, due to a complete creative convergence, a local family in my community saw my art on social media, and asked if they could pay me to teach art. I said “Absolutely!”
With funds from my summer art teaching gig plus donations from other generous supporters, we were able to get the Center to a stage functional enough to move their operations.
The video above was taken just a few days prior to the Grand Opening celebration.
Despite all of the progress, the Center is not yet complete. We are still raising funds to add latrines, a small rainwater tank, flooring, plumbing and electrical. You can support that effort here! (By the way, did you know that photos on Substack accept hyperlinks? Give it a try, that photo below is clickable!)
They Asked For An Art Expo, I Agreed. The Rest is History.
I connected with the artists in Spring 2024. I was mostly impressed by their talent and passion. The more I came to know Founder Akon Deograce and his artist friends, the more I came to know their values, hopes, and dreams. I was touched by their consistent care for each other, their environment, and the more vulnerable amongst them.
So when they asked “Can we have an art expo?” I couldn’t help but say yes. We did it. In less than a month, Akon of NYTC,
of GoGreen Social Initiative, and I pulled off an online art expo. And, it was a hit. Read more here about our June 1st Online Young Refugee Artist Expo.It was so much fun that we are doing it again on September 28, 2024. This time, we have invited 3 young artists from Kibera Slums in Nairobi, Kenya and 3 young artists in Lowell, MA, USA to join us. Tickets are on sale at Eventbrite for $20 and 100% of proceeds will be shared between the Future Within CBO in Kibera Slums where two of the Kibera artists teach and Nakivale Young Talent Community.
For more details, check out the article below which will be updated with artist profiles and pictures as they roll in.
Non-Stop Nakivale Arts
Here is a summary of posts currently up on the Refugee Artist Support Circle section as well as a few other links for you to peruse:
Refugee Artist Support Circle Landing Page - an easy place to start
Join the Circle Introductory Post - learn about paid subscription perks
NYTC Artist Profiles - learn more about each artist
Non-Stop Nakivale Arts Gallery - view their work!
YouTube Playlist of NYTC Artists Presenting their New Art - July 2024
Purchase prints, tshirts or bags on my Etsy shop - 100% of proceeds benefit the artists
Contribute to the Nakivale Artists’ Tip Top Jar (that I manage on their behalf) to support their material and supply needs.
Contribute to the GoFundMe to help me help them complete the Art Education Center
Everything is converging for me these days in big ways.
Before I met the artists, my own art practice was stalled. I credit meeting and working with them for reigniting my passion for drawing and painting.
Needless to say, my life thanks to the NYTC artists is overflowing now with art, writing, and organizing. It’s also full of laughs, creativity, and connection. While they are 8,000 miles away, we are in communication daily allowing me to have a unique insider view (yet from the outside!) of the life of a Nakivale Young Talent Community artist.
Thank you for joining me today to celebrate! However you choose to be involved - as a reader, subscriber, contributor, art expo audience member - on behalf of the NYTC artists, you are always welcome to the NYTC family!
In closing, enjoy the NYTC theme song! “No matter the tribe, no matter the nationality, we live as a family…”
