Milk & Honey Group Benefit Show at Hurley
Recap: Milk & Honey Group Benefit Show at Hurley
July 20, 2012, Costa Mesa, Ca.
One of the only things better than affordable art is affording it to contribute to an important human rights cause. In the case of Milk & Honey, this was a one-night opportunity to support “Hope for India” through the channel of an optimistic art and photography exhibition by Meredith Ambruso and friends. Meredith recently founded Milk & Honey with Jordan Lovelis and judging by the group of quality artists involved and the large crowd who all seem to be her biggest fan, this is a non-profit with big promise, benefiting women and child victims of human trafficking in India. Matt Wignall’s 3-by-5-foot photos were among the most human-rights charged works, taken in Malawi, Africa for the charity, Water Wells For Africa. There were three paintings and several photographs by Ed Templeton, his blend of language and lifestyle that made a soulful cornerstone for this exhibition. Hanging amid Captain Soncho’s photography wall was a four-photo study of bicycle handlebars; it was his smiling portraits and the uplifting collage of whimsical works, including Michelle Bandanch’s (michelleswork) clay rhino and giraffe on eucalyptus wood coasters and Brook Power’s illustrations of flowers and animals on wood two-by-fours, that could have brightened the moods of anyone who might have been bummed by such a depressing day in America. Urgency, identity and hope: good messages for all of us, wherever/whoever we are. Providinghopeforindia.org and facebook.com/hopeforindia –Dana Nichols