Artists get behind concert for cause

AS a former refugee, Iranian artist Mostafa Faraji was only too willing to support a concert in Glenorchy this weekend raising funds the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre.

The Concert for Compassion will be held today at the Don Bosco Creative Arts Centre.

More than 30 local performers, artists, and speakers will take part in the event, which will feature music, dance, circus, short films, poetry, and an art exhibition by Faraji. All proceeds from the concert will be donated to independent, non-profit organis- ation Asylum Seeker Resource Centre.

Faraji, 22, who paints oil landscapes, arrived in Tas- mania by himself as a refugee when he was 15 and was adopted by a local family.

“I never used to do art be- fore then, but then I realised art actually made me relaxed, and the way of communicating with myself and other people was through art,” Faraji said.

“I really want to support asylum seekers, because I was one.”

Organiser Sarah Jacob said many in Tasmania’s performing arts community feel strongly about the plight of asylum seekers.

“I’ve been overwhelmed with the support that I’ve had from the local community about this, it’s been really heartening,” Jacob said.

The concert will be held from 6pm at the Don Bosco Creative Arts Centre.