Three Island artists — Donald Cole, Joan Wortis and Elaine Hanowell — will present a slide talk this weekend about their recent journey to Vietnam.

The talk, scheduled for 7:30 p.m. Sunday, June 7, at the Presbyterian Church, is a benefit for Care to Help, a Seattle nonprofit that builds wells and schools in minority villages in Vietnam.

The talk has a suggested donation of $10.

Wortis, Cole and Hanowell have all shown their art on Vashon and in Seattle at ArtXchange Gallery.

They have also traveled to many Asian countries, finding inspiration in what Wortis called “the aesthetic beauty” they find there.

This was the first time the trio had traveled together, however.

Wortis and Cole have given slide presentations in the past about their travels to Cambodia, Myanmar, Thailand, Laos and China, with proceeds from some of those talks benefitting groups, including Human Rights Watch and the land trust.

This time, their slide show will focus on what Wortis described as “a month-long immersion” in Vietnam’s culture, art and history.

The trio traveled to Hanoi and the mountains in the north, near the Chinese border, where they visited many minority villages, temples and pagodas.

Wortis said she, Cole and Hanowell were met with hospitality and friendship everywhere as they traveled through small hamlets, trekking and doing several home stays in houses on stilts.

The slide show, she said, was a way to share what she, Cole and Hanowell had seen and learned on their journey, while also doing something to improve the conditions of a country devastated by multiple wars, invasions and occupations.

Contact Vashon-Maury Island Beachcomber Arts Editor Elizabeth Shepherd at arts@vashonbeachcomber.com or 206-463-9195.

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