FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - March 20th, 2008
"Women of Mary's Place" Portraits now showing in the greater Puget Sound region
Seattle, WA - These sixteen portraits look like women you see every day: middle-aged women of various ethnicities, nothing to draw your notice. You may well have walked by one of them, completely unaware that she is among the many homeless clients of Mary's Place. That's the realization that drove Tina Marohn, an artist and Mary's Place volunteer, to conceive and direct this portrait project: the homeless are largely unseen and unnoticed, kept separate from the normal world.
"Homelessness is a significant problem in our area," Marohn said. "I wanted the public to see that homeless women don't look any different from other women. That's a frightening aspect of homelessness - you look around and realize anyone could become homeless. Maybe that's why it's so difficult to get help solving the problem. It's too close to the bone for most people to acknowledge."
Marohn put out a request for artists to volunteer their talents for the project and received an excited response from sixteen artists that felt they were following their call to help in the community. Then sixteen women from Mary's Place decided to give interviews about their lives, a sensitive task since many homeless women feel guilty and ashamed of their homelessness. The result is a compelling collection of artwork in diverse styles. Looking at these portraits, the viewer cannot help but become aware of our common humanity, how closely all people are linked, how what touches one of us touches us all.
The "Women of Mary's Place" exhibition is a touring show that will be featured throughout the greater Puget Sound region. A newly published book, available for $20, contains a color reproduction of each portrait and a brief biography based on the subject's interview. A slide presentation is also being readied. All funds raised by the book and the presentation go directly to Mary's Place center.
For more information about the portrait exhibition, book sales, or to arrange a slide presentation for your group or organization, visit the project Web site at http://www.womenofmarysplace.org.
ABOUT MARY'S PLACE
The "Women of Mary's Place" day center is a volunteer project of the Church of Mary Magdalene in Seattle. Countless homeless and formerly homeless women look to Mary's Place for a sense of community and hope for the future, as well as for some things often taken for granted, like laundry facilities, showers, and meals. Mary's Place has nourished homeless women in body, mind, and soul since 2002.
CONTACTS:
Christine Weed
Administrative & Development Director, Church of Mary Magdalene
(206) 621-8474
development@churchofmarymagdalene.org
Marty Hartman
Program Director, Mary's Place
(206) 621-8474
marysplace@churchofmarymagdalene.org"