This article “A specialist in communication opens an art center in Buzau County” was written by Marie Andries, with photos from Eli Drui, our friends from the Libertate newspaper, one of the main national newspapers and it includes a section about AMURTEL Family (see about half way down).
I invited Marie, one of the journalists I have become friends with to come and make a piece about the Alunis Art Center” which is a newly opened arts center very close to us, run by Iulia Sirbu. AMURTEL has entered into a partnership project with the Alunis Arts Center to make a pottery school for disadvantaged children in the surrounding villages, including the children from AMURTEL Family and Fountain of Hope. I find it quite bold and inspiring that Iulia opened such a creative and progressive project in such a forgotten tiny rural village. Already, during this summer she has organized several concerts, films, fairs and artistic events that really are stimulating the cultural life of the area in an unprecedented way.
The journalists came to the children’s home first, and then we went together to the arts center, where a special workshop on traditional mask making, was followed by a performance of traditional dancing. The performers were 3 hours late and took some time to get organized once they arrived…but this gave a lot of time to just spend time chatting with the journalists and getting to know them more, which was really nice. The children meanwhile enjoyed a picnic and then making masks.
I found out that Maria was working in the team with Tolontan – one of the star journalists of Romania who appears in the film “Collective” that one a lot of Academy awards and Oscars this year. That is a really chilling documentary about corruption in the Romanian healthcare system, but quite well done. If you haven’t seen it, I recommend it!