Grand Circle Gallery and Artists for Humanity

November 18, 2010 (Boston, MA) Grand Circle Gallery and Artists for Humanity (AFH) announce the opening of their joint-exhibit, “Going Places,” which will run through January 15, 2011 at Grand Circle Gallery at 347 Congress Street in Boston’s Fort Point Channel District.

Items will be available for sale following the close of the exhibit and will benefit AFH.

The exhibit features luggage and sneakers hand-painted by the students from AFH, guided by mentoring artist Sneha Shrestha, a native of Nepal and recent graduate of Gettysburg College. She is also the founder of the SHOO Project, an organization that raises funds to support a children’s library in Kathmandu, Nepal.

“Not only did these young artists rise up to the challenge of painting on a 3-D canvas [the luggage and the shoes],” said Shrestha, “but they were also ‘going places’ by learning so much about themselves and the countries they were painting.”

Each piece is tagged with a photograph of the artist and a statement written by the artist about the project and the country or city depicted. The work is displayed throughout the gallery and is enhanced by Grand Circle’s extensive collection of vintage travel posters and photography.

This collaboration supports the missions of both Grand Circle Corporation (GCC) and AFH and is not the first time the two organizations have partnered in ventures that support Boston’s inner-city teens.

“Our mission is to bridge economic, racial and social diversions by providing underserved youth with the keys to self-sufficiency through paid employment in the arts,” said AFH Executive Director Susan Rodgerson.

“The opening of Going Places was a tremendous experience for the artists,” she added. “I overheard one of our teens say that the exhibit at Grand Circle Gallery made them feel accomplished – that is what we do at AFH.”

Grand Circle Corporation, (GCC), parent company of Grand Circle Gallery and travel companies Grand Circle Travel and Overseas Adventure Travel, strives to support the communities and countries from which it operates.

“We are thrilled to host this show at our gallery,” said Chairman Alan E. Lewis. “This is a very talented, dedicated group of teens who are clearly empowered by their artistic talent and take great pride in their work. It is our hope that they will continue painting and thereby enriching their lives.”

Grand Circle Foundation, the philanthropic arm of GCC, is a community partner and supporter of AFH, having donated more than $1.3 million to the organization in recent years.

GCC and AFH thank generous supporters Samsonite and Goodwill for their donation of luggage and Keds for their donation of sneakers.

Gallery hours are Wednesday and Friday, 11:00am-2:00pm; Thursday, 11:00am-7:00pm and Saturday, 11:00am-3:00pm. Admission is FREE and the gallery is handicap accessible. For more information on GCG, please visit www.gct.com/grandcirclegallery or call 617-346-6459. For more information on AFH, please visit www.afhboston.com.