Smithsonian Auctions Off Cover Art For Haitian Recovery

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed)
Aug 29th 2010 at 2:01PM

The September issue of Smithsonian magazine has a great article on Haitian artists and their lives after the earthquake that killed 230,000 in January 2010. Smithsonian commissioned a painting by Haitian artist Frantz Zéphirin for the September 2010 issue cover which will be auctioned off for charity. The painting is more than just a piece of art it's representation of the response to Haiti's earthquake. The birds represent those who have offered help and carry words such as justice, education, health, and peace in their beaks. The bags with dollar signs show that Haiti is still in dire financial need.

Fifty percent of the proceeds from the auction will benefit the Smithsonian Institution-Haiti Cultural Recovery Project and the other half will go to the artist and the Gallerie Monnin, which represents Zéphirin and plans to donate part of its proceeds to the Dallas Monnin Foundation, a foundation that hopes to protect the environment in Haiti through reforestation, to conserve watershed areas and to conduct civic education classes for children in the Port Salut area. The auction starts on September 8 and ends on September 17. The minimum bid is $4,000.

Tags: Haiti aid, haiti earthquake, Smithsonian, Smithsonian Magazine