The Somerset Community College (SCC) Student Government Association is hosting an art exhibit of the Kentucky Organ Donor Affiliates’ (KODA) Body Mapping Project. The exhibit, held in the East End Gallery located in Stoner Hall on the Somerset Campus, is on display from November 4 through November 21, and features works of art created by recipients of organ donors with life-size portraits that convey the emotion associated with receiving the organ and its impact upon the recipients’ lives.
Artists were guided by Kenyan-based artist Xavier Verhoest, known for his previous work with patients with AIDS, who came to the project through well-known artist Ruth Hunt Wood of Lexington. Among the artists featured is Carolyn McCall, wife of KCTCS President Michael McCall.
On Thursday, November 14, the exhibit will be accompanied throughout the day by activities to celebrate the project and promoting organ donation. Beginning at 12:30 p.m. in the Citizens National Bank Community Room of the Harold Rogers Student Commons, there will be readings of selected passages of “Hide and Watch,” by SCC employee and author Jill Lawson, with signed books available for purchase. At 1:00 p.m. the documentary about the project, “Body Maps: Transplantation Inside and Out,” will be shown, followed by a round table discussion hosted by Charlotte Wong, of KODA. An artist’s reception and viewing of the exhibit, is planned for 3 p.m. in the Stoner Hall foyer, catered by SCC’s Culinary Arts department. All events are free and open to the public.
The documentary is also showing on November 4 at 10:00 a.m. in the community room; and, in the Learning Commons on Wednesday, November 6 at 10:00 a.m., and Wednesday, November 13 at 1:00 p.m.
About Kentucky Organ Donor Affiliates
Kentucky Organ Donor Affiliates (KODA) is dedicated to saving lives through organ and tissue donation and transplantation. There are now 110 million registered organ donors in the United States, with over 1.3 million who have joined the donor registry in Kentucky. Still, the number of people in need of transplants continues to rise, with over 117,000 waiting for a life-saving organ transplant.
The Kentucky Organ Donor Registry is a safe and secure electronic database where a person’s wishes regarding organ donation will be fulfilled. Just one individual donor can provide organs and tissue for nearly 50 people in need. To join the registry, visit www.donatelifeky.org or sign up when you renew your driver’s license. The donor registry enables family members to know that you chose to save and enhance lives through donation. Kentucky’s “First Person Consent” laws mean that the wishes of an individual on the registry will be carried out as requested.