SARASOTA – In its 30th year in the fight against HIV, CAN Community Health will observe World Aids Day with ‘A day without Art’.
To bring awareness to those who have lost the battle to HIV, the Sarasota Museum of Art is taking on a day without it.
“Originally, CAN has done an AIDS walk every year to commemorate World Aids Day but this year we wanted to do something different, the Sarasota Museum of Art came to us and we are very excited to pay tribute to such an important day within our industry to commemorate those individuals that have lost the fight to aids back in the day,” said Senior Vice President of Marketing & Communications at CAN Community Health, Roger Capote.
The event will feature an installation of visual art named ‘Untitled’ of the late Felix Gonzalez-Torres.
“A powerful piece made by the artist in 1991 to commemorate the passing of his lover, it’s one of candy spills series works, it really is meant to help us ruminate on the power of the sweetness of life, of the moments we can all cherish but also meant to signify when our loved ones are ill we must be there for them,” said Executive Director of the Sarasota Museum of Art, Virginia Shearer.
The National AIDS quilt will also be on display at the event.
“Paying tribute to a similar display like they did in the national mall, back in the days, so you will be able to see them, view them, honor them, and pay respects to those individuals and really a moment of silence, to our friends and loved ones who have passed,” said Capote.
The event features live performances, guest speakers and is free of charge and open to everyone.
For more information on the lineup of events, you can visit the Sarasota Museum of Arts website here.