Freedom auction in support of girls' education in Africa
Posted on 19 April 2006
The pieces range in value from around £20 to several thousand pounds and include a portrait of the Archbishop of York, a decorated glass panel, a design on metal and a piece called Mermaid, which looks at issues of gender violence. There are also several sculptures.Artists from as far afield as Greece, the USA and Africa have donated work, including Michael Khumalo from Malawi, who has donated a sculpture entitled Proud Woman. Mr. Khumalo's work regularly sells for thousands of pounds.
We chose CAMFED because we wanted to support a charity which brought together a lot of issues that Janet and I care about, including gender imbalance, girls' education and the developing world
Jessica Murray
The link with African artists is particularly relevant as CAMFED fights poverty and AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa by educating girls. CAMFED began in 1993 by supporting 32 girls in Zimbabwe. Today, it benefits nearly 250,000 children educationally in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Ghana and Tanzania.
Says Jessica Murray: "We chose CAMFED because we wanted to support a charity which brought together a lot of issues that Janet and I care about, including gender imbalance, girls' education and the developing world. CAMFED does all of that". The organisers hope to raise enough money to pay for more than 100 years of education for some of the poorest girls in the world.
The auction will take place at Bishopthorpe Palace in York on Saturday 13 May, and tickets include a fruit and cheese buffet. There is also a jazz band and a raffle with prizes including a signed copy of a book by Laurence Llewelyn Bowen. The cost of hosting the event has been met by the University of York's Graduate Training Unit, so all proceeds will go directly to CAMFED's work in Africa.
The auction will be compered by Martin Stankovski and conducted by well-known BBC radio personality Elly Fiorentini. Tickets cost £20 and must be purchased in advance.
The items to be auctioned can be viewed at www.yorkfreedomauction.org.uk and tickets can be purchased from the website. To find out more about CAMFED's work please visit www.camfed.org.
For more information, please contact Angela Young, Press Officer, at CAMFED on ayoung@camfed.org or 01223 362648, and Janet Peukert on jp167@york.ac.uk or 01904 433038.