The art of refugees

WALKER Street Gallery will host an exhibition which explores the experiences of a refugee from Western Sudan.
The exhibition is on throughout the month of June and will form part of the events celebrating National Refugee Week 2009.
The artwork by Springvale North resident Yousif Khalil Kalo Kunda records his journey as a refugee who fled to the Nile River in Cairo in 1998.
His work uses a variety of different mediums to capture the beauty, rich visual expressions and social observations he found during his journey through various African cultures. The exhibition includes landscapes, seascapes, architecture and still life.
Kunda, who is originally from the Nuba Mountains in Western Sudan, said art was his way of recording his experiences as a refugee.
“I spent much time studying the various Sudanese motifs beyond the Nuba Mountains and along the Nile Valley. These motifs and patterns characterize the many Sudanese communities I met along the way,” he said.
“My interest and vision is to bring together these very individual designs to create a range of colourful and fascinating works.”
Kunda was a Visual Arts teacher at an education centre for refugee children in Cairo and presented various art workshops in collaboration with the Canadian Embassy and the United Nations High Commission for Refugees in Cairo.
He has exhibited at various sites in Australia, most recently at the Immigration Museum of Victoria for the Sudanese Festival (2007) and Casey Council (2006).
Beyond the Nile will be on display from 1-29 June at the Upper Walker Street Gallery, Walker Street, Dandenong.