United States Debut Exhibit of Critically Acclaimed Slovak Artist’s “Uniting Hands”

Washington, DC, May 10 -- One of Slovakia’s most lauded visual artists brought his latest groundbreaking art exhibit to the U.S. this Tuesday, May 10^th. The Slovak Embassy in Washington, D.C. has delightedly agreed to house Roman Turcel’s visionary presentation entitled “Uniting Hands,” a collection of 23 remarkable oil on canvas pieces. The theme that the exhibit plays upon, one most appropriate for the current state of world affairs and one well illustrated by Turcel’s title, Uniting Hands, is that of global unity. The collection starts small but aims big, effectively embodying what it espouses - each piece is dedicated to global leaders, celebrities, and world renown, modern-day visionaries, who Turcel invites to use their clout to popularize the notion of global unity.

“Each painting in this exhibit is like an envelope; it is up to the people depicted in each to fill it with a message,” Turcel says. He invites the pan-cultural characters in his paintings to sign those messages directly onto his canvases, characters including the Dalai Lama, Queen Elizabeth, Lance Armstrong, and even Donald Trump. The talented young artist, who has been painting since 1993, has produced artworks that are at once organic, interactive, and as this exhibit demonstrates, uniting - a feat which he accomplishes all without any formal arts education. Sensitive to the injustice and discord the world is rife with, Turcel hopes that this exhibit will encourage people from all cultures and backgrounds to share their beliefs, learn from each other, and shake hands.

Richard Marko (P.O. Box 1496, Merchantville, NJ 08109, info@markostrategies.com), the creative consultant who found Turcel, saw a fellow visionary’s ambitions in his work and enlisted him to present his vision in the United States. “There are countless Americans around the world that are not US citizens,” Mr. Marko believes. Marko’s ‘Americans’ stand up for American values across the globe, effectively impacting terrorism and prejudice at the root in their homeland and in their neighborhoods. Turcel, he believes, is one of these ‘Americans’. Now that Turcel has experienced first hand the hearts and souls of ordinary people in the United States, his belief in peace, freedom, and liberty is stronger than ever. And Roman has a lot of friends in his homeland to share his experiences with.

Marko concludes that in the fight against terrorism, the most effective strategy to be had is positive person-to-person communication. Marko will continue to seek out ‘Turcels’ and help them to experience United States first-hand. He proposes the every U.S. citizen does the same. He further proposes that this motion be encouraged through an incentive such as a tax deduction.

The exhibit will be open to the public thru September 2005 by appointment only (stella@slovakembassy-us.org). The project’s web site is www.unitinghands.org