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City of ChildrenCity of children / press release |
For immediate release HUNGARIAN CULTURAL CENTER presents City of Children Portraits by Monika Merva September 21st-November 6th, 2006 Opening Reception: Thursday, September 21st, 6-8pm with musical performance by Kalman Olah** Two little girls playing with dolls in the woods. Teenage boys lounging in front of the TV. A schoolyard, a playground. These are all the familiar environments of children yet with a noticeable absence: adults. In Károlyi István Gyermekközpont, a government-housing compound in Fót, Hungary, this community of disenfranchised children lives alone together, eating, playing, learning. A city of children. In Monika Merva’s moving but unsentimental portraits of the forgotten children of Fót Gyermekközpont, she presents the life of a community that became a family out of necessity. About the artist: As a first generation American of Hungarian descent, Monika Merva’s interest in Fót Gyermekközpont is rather personal. Monika received her MFA in Photography from the Savannah College of Art & Design. Her work has been shown throughout the U.S. and Europe and she has been the recipient of numerous awards, most recently as First Prizewinner in Professional Category in the ASMP Image 05 Competition. City of Children will be shown at The Hungarian Museum of Photography in 2007. A book of interviews with the children, commentary, and the images is planned to accompany the exhibition. Proceeds from the sale of the book will be donated to the Fót Gyermekközpont. _______________________________ **About Kalman Olah Composer and musician Kalman Olah is Hungary’s leading jazz pianist today. On September 17th he will receive the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz Composition Award in Washington, DC. Olah’s performance at the Hungarian Center is his only New York appearance on this occasion. ________________________________________ Open hours Monday-Friday, 9-5pm or weekends by appointment For more information: Hungarian Cultural Center 447 Broadway, New York, NY, 10012 212-750-4450 or info@culturehungary.org |
