The Saheti School in Bedfordview hosted a fundraising gala dinner on November 14 to celebrate Advocate George Bizos’s 88th birthday.
The title of this year’s Art exhibition was, ‘We’re not in Kansas anymore’.
The title was derived from the famous quote from the 1939 movie, “the Wizard of Oz”, or also known as “Somewhere over the Rainbow”, where Dorothy exclaimed her alarm to her dog Toto at her new surroundings just after riding a tornado. This theme suggests a situation where you find yourself in strange surroundings outside your comfort zone. The exhibition was curated by Mr Yannis Generalis, an alumnus of Saheti.
The event was attended by many well-known South African artists who participated in this initiative to raise funds through the art they exhibited at the event.
Artists who attended the event included Mr Gordon Froud, Mr Michael Meyersfeld, Mr Lucas Thobejane, Ms Tanisha Bhana, Mr Izaane Wiid and many more. Justice Dikgang Moseneke, the Deputy Chief Justice of South Africa, also attended the event which was hosted as a fundraiser in support of the George Bizos Saheti Scholarship and Bursary Fund (GBSSBF).
The Scholarship and Bursary Fund’s aim is to enable deserving pupils to receive quality education at Saheti School, an English-medium, independent school established in 1974 by a group of founders under the leadership of Adv Bizos.
In 1974, Adv Bizos, the distinguished human rights advocate, led the initiative to establish The South African Hellenic Educational and Technical Institute (SAHETI) in Johannesburg.
The founder’s vision was to establish a school which would provide an excellent modern education, while inculcating the ethos and values of the right to freedom, equality, democracy and citizenship, and other well-known Hellenic ideals.
This non-racial, multi-ethnic English medium school has, from the outset, sought to embrace all communities in South Africa and beyond, resulting in a learner body of 26 different ethnicities.
In 2003, the Board of Saheti, on the initiative of Adv Bizos, established a Scholarship and Bursary Fund to assist and attract pupils of outstanding ability who are in financial need. Advocate Bizos serves as the Life Vice President of the Saheti Board.
The fund enables pupils, who would otherwise have not had the opportunity, access to quality secondary education. This is an annual art auction and a commitment from the George Bizos Fund to nurture and support young creative pupils as the cultural voices of the future. The exhibition is open to the public until December 4 during working hours.
