The collective art exhibition “Friend,” in support of Lesotho’s Sentebale Charity, opened to the public at New York’s Ki Smith gallery on December 14.
The show features a collection of works by pioneers of Minimalism and Op Art alongside contemporary artists; Tadaaki Kuwayama, Agnes Martin, Rakuko Naito, Bridget Riley and Frank Stella are showing on the ground floor and Sang Eun, Richard Hambleton, Alana Dee Haynes, Sono Kuwayama, Dylan Reitz-Cruz, Jorge Luis Rodriguez and Taiji Terasaki at the downstairs room.
Ki Smith Gallery will be donating 100% of gallery proceeds from “Friend” to Sentebale, as stated on its website.
The exhibition will run until January 19, 2025.
ART OPENING DOORS FOR IMPACT
An exclusive VIP Cocktail Reception took place ahead of the official opening, on December 4, in the presence of the artists as well as Sentebale’s Co‑Founding Patron, Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex, and Board Chair Dr. Sophie Chandauka MBE.
Gallerist Ki Smith welcomed supporters from the art, philanthropy, and culture worlds to the launch of the highly anticipated show.
“What you give is what you get,” is a motto that Ki Smith strongly believes in, and has previously displayed on the facade of his first gallery Apostrophe NYC in 2012.
The evening also hosted a panel about the opportunity for art to open doors for impact.
Sentebale Co-Founding Patron Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex with artist Rakuko Naito, Nolan Feng, Edward Mccabe, and gallerist Ki Smith. Photo credit: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Ki Smith Gallery and Sentebale.
A CHARITABLE PARTNERSHIP
Sentebale was founded in 2006 by Prince Harry, The Duke of Sussex, and HRH Prince Seeiso of Lesotho and to this day works with children and young people in Southern Africa on sustainable solutions for health, wealth creation and climate resilience.
The name of the charity means ‘forget-me-not’ in the Sesotho language, representing a pledge to remember the most vulnerable children in the region.
Sono Kuwayama poses with her artwork at Ki Smith Gallery. Photo credit: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Ki Smith Gallery and Sentebale.
Ki Smith Gallery, on the other hand, has always stood at the intersection of art and impact, consistently using its platform to help raise awareness and charitable donations for important and impactful NGOs since its conception in 2018.
It was first connected with the Sentebale team over a year ago and was immediately drawn to Sentebale’s wide scope of impactful work in youth entrepreneurship, as the two parties realised their values aligned and there was shared kinship in approaching problems from new angles to find innovative solutions in their respective fields.
Taiji Terasaki poses with his artwork at Ki Smith Gallery. Photo credit: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Ki Smith Gallery and Sentebale.
The gallery’s team visited Sentebale’s headquarters in Lesotho and witnessed “the outstanding convening power, generosity, and interdependence that Sentebale harbors.”
“We were deeply moved by the incredible sense of optimism present in Sentebale’s community. This spanned from local youth in Lesotho and Botswana, who have been empowered by Sentebale to become leaders and entrepreneurs, to world leaders and industry titans who use their influence to unite people and create solutions for the future,” the Gallery website reads.
“Collaboration, building community, and empowering a rising generation have always been core tenants of Ki Smith Gallery and Friend is a result of the Sentebale’s parallel ethos,” it adds.
Jorge Luis Rodriguez poses with his artwork at Ki Smith Gallery. Photo credit: Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Ki Smith Gallery and Sentebale.
