Artists to enhance their experience through ‘Cultural Crossing Project’

Madam Sarah Güsten-Marr, an England-based Artist in collaboration with Values For Life (VFL-Ghana) is to provide opportunity for some selected artists to enhance their experience through the “Cultural Crossing Project”.

The project is basically a platform to enable African artists travel on the continent and share relevant experience.

It will also help to strengthen cultural ties between countries on the continent.

Madam Güsten-Marr told the Ghana News Agency in Accra that they were currently working in West Africa and would extend it to different countries in future.

The Project was launched in Ghana, somewhere last year in partnership with VFL-Ghana and the Founder of the Ehalakasa Movement, Benedict Kojo Quaye, better known as Sir Black.

She said the project would also allow the artists to display their talents, while interacting with other artists to promote their arts.

She said last year, the organisers sent artists to Côte d'Ivoire and Mali, adding “that after the Liberian election, we will send artists to that country and also a number to Sao Tome in January.”

She said there were a lot of potential talents in Ghana and those talents needed to be harnessed and promoted.

Madam Güsten-Marr, who is also the Founder of GalleryGM and is passionate about culture, art, music and the African continent, said the arts could connect people and make a difference in the World.

“I truly believe that travelling enhances knowledge, so the more we travel, the more we are open to different things, which is exactly what we need in the world. Sir Black and I got together and decided it was important to give opportunities to our brothers and sisters in the arts on the continent,” she added.

The Founder said her artiste-in-residence programme in Yorkshire was still functional and African artistes were welcome to participate.

Her GalleryGM has also made provision to support a culture-driven environmental programme for a section of Liberians in the Central Region under the Cultural Crossings project.

She said together with her partners they have created the ‘Healing Circle’ project to offer further support for the orphaned children and every eight weeks the children would partake in the Healing Circle.

The goal of the Healing Circle is to encourage the children to help their community and therefore made to feel like they are a part of their community and are making a difference.

Ms Abla Dzifa Gomashie, the Chief Executive Officer, VFL-Ghana, an NGO said the project was a welcome news for the organisation, who believed in talents.

She praised the project saying “it helps to create a platform for young people to have a stage on which they can fly higher.

She cautioned artists, who would be given the opportunity to endeavour to return home after their activity, saying if they fail to return, they would be blocking the opportunity of others.

“We will have a contract with the artists, to serve as a bond that will enable them to return home,” she said.

She said organisers have an image and reputation to protect and the integrity of the artists themselves would be on the line, if they fail to return.