Friend of Free the Slaves, artist Ben Swatez will be having an art show this Sunday, February 12 at the Phantom Gallery in Long Beach, CA. Last year, Ben visited our frontline work in the village of Bahari in India. The community there had just recently come out of slavery through Free the Slaves’ Free a Village, Build a Movement initiative. Ben brought art supplies and taught the villagers how to paint. The resulting artworks are breath-taking—you can see some of them here.
Since returning to the U.S., Ben has been developing a body of work based on the paintings by the formerly enslaved villagers. He has created art pieces that combine the villagers’ self portraits with portraits that he paints. You’ll be able to see his work in progress at the art show this weekend.
We’d love to see you there!