When Enoch Magazine learned Flagler Palm Coast High-schoolers were trafficking art from countries like Vietnam, Thailand, Tibet, Kenya, Pakistan, Peru, Nepal, Chili and Nicaragua, we had to investigate further…

The name is “Project A.R.T.”, (Artisans Respected through Trade). Birthed out of a popular high school club called Community Problem Solving, Project A.R.T. is the creation of 12 students at Flagler Palm Coast High School. Their intent is to instill a sense pride in the artisans for the work they produce and also to raise enough revenue to sustain 10 families in the countries mentioned above for a full year.

Vincent Scerbo, a 16 yr. sophomore and leader of Project A.R.T. says the school’s Problem Solving club is a “big deal” in the community and has been for many years. The program encourages kids to find problems in their community and seek out solutions. “This year, we decided to look at the term “community” in a global sense,” says Vincent. “Our coach, Miss Tomko, who’s been an awesome mentor, told us about a school in Florida that was purchasing art from the Fair Trade Federation and selling it at their school store.”

The Fair Trade Federation website, www.fairtradefederation.org is a place where many products including art can be discovered at a small price. Fair Trade offers the security of doing business with retailers who don’t use child labor. The students started doing searches on Fair Trade’s site, and were instantly drawn to an unfamiliar world of foreign creativity. The idea of buying art from artisans of “developing nations” was taken to the next level by Vincent and his team. Project A.R.T. wanted to support these artists by buying their work, and they figured why not get the whole community involved in a global art movement. “Just to see that there’s so much out there from different artisans is really cool,” said Vincent. “All 12 of us were looking on different computers at the same time and everyone was saying, ‘Hey, look at this piece of pottery I just found!’”

Project A.R.T.’s goal in purchasing art from locations like Tibet, and Kenya is to sell it at a community event they create, much like a fancy art gallery or auction. With the eager support of the Chamber of Commerce, Project A.R.T. will have a night to remember over a hosted dinner, a presentation to promote awareness and then both silent and live auctions. And all of this will take place at the Palm Coast Yacht Club. Not bad for 12 kids. The high school’s art teacher Patrick Maxcy told Enoch Magazine he found out about all this when students came to him and asked if he would donate some of his artwork to their event. He loved the idea and did two special paintings that will run in the show. “Most of the art they are buying is made by artists with families to support. And the students want to keep this an ongoing thing by purchasing more art and selling it continually,” Patrick explains. “I thought that was cool, instead of just doing it [once] and then forgetting about it.”

Spokeswoman for the Fair Trade Federation, Carmen Iezzi told Enoch Magazine, “For more than 60 years, fair trade organizations have worked to create sustainable and positive change in both their communities and those of producers. Students remain one of the key drivers in this effort and, through their hard work, these students will help build sustainable partnerships for years to come.”

Vincent is quick to point out that for every 1000 dollars of art that is purchased through the Fair Trade Federation, a family of 4 in a developing nation will remain solvent for an entire year. With contemporary paintings donated by local artists like Patrick, and all the art from overseas, the upcoming yacht club auction should make a big splash in the community. Project A.R.T. is only 12 people strong right now, but already they have purchased $2000 worth of art (from early donations) in preparation for the big night. By the Fair Trade’s calculations, 2 families of 4 have already gained support for a year, and this can only be expected to grow.

When asked why Project A.R.T. exists, Vincent says, “We just see how good we have it here. In most cases, you walk to the store and you can buy whatever you want. We have really everything in our reach and over in developing nations, it’s always a struggle to earn enough money to remain solvent. A thousand dollars to take care of a family for a whole year isn’t that much here. So if it takes purchasing and selling art work and instilling pride in the artisans of these countries, then we’re 100% behind that.”

There are a bunch of different retailers associated through the Fair Trade website. Some focus on silk paintings, others on pottery and oddities such as candle sticks and singing bowls. Yes, singing bowls, (you’ll have to go to the auction to hear what they sound like). To make a difference in your community locally as well as globally, go to www.fairtradefederation.org and click on the top right, blue box that says “Find Products” and you’ll see all the choices appear…and stay tuned as Enoch Magazine waits to see how Project A.R.T.’s auction goes and follows up on this story.