Peter sounds as though he’s been smoking 50 Marlboro cigarettes a day for centuries. Despite being barely four feet tall, he’s quick of wit and sharp of tongue, with the Gecko-like negotiating skills of a hardened stock trader more than five times his age. Standing barefoot in the scorching sand, he shifts his load of trinkets from one hip to the other: “You buy bracelet.” It isn’t so much a question as a directive.
Serendipity Beach in Sihanoukville serves as the trading floor for hundreds of Peters every year. Born into families too poor to afford electricity or running water, these children spend their days plying simple wares to tourists splayed out on the sand. When they hit the critical age of 16, their only options are low-paid manual labour, or the bar scene.
Appalled at their Hobsonian predicament, English artist Roger Dixon in 2006 offered a handful of beach kids the chance to take brush in hand and experiment with expressing themselves on paper, while dipping a toe in formal education for the very first time. Six years on, Let Us Create now has 160 budding artists on its books.
“Rather than selling souvenirs to tourists, the children spend their spare time playing, creating, learning, and interacting with their friends, our generous volunteers, and our dedicated staff,” says Development Coordinator Tavie Meier. “We are constantly working with the families to make sure they know the long-term effects of an education. The short-term money that can be made from the beach immediately affects their lives, so it’s incredibly difficult to show them the long-term view of the future.”
One such boy, Maily, has just secured a university scholarship through Adopt a Village. “A very accomplished artist”, he will be exhibiting alongside some of his classmates at the Entitlement to Freedom exhibition at Botanic Cafe this month – part of the month-long Free Your Minds Festival being hosted by Meta House. Choose from a wide range of paintings, digital prints and postcards, and watch Maily – now 17 and a model student – give a live ‘drip painting’ demonstration.
WHO: Let Us Create
WHAT: A Beach Kid’s Entitlement to Freedom art exhibition
WHERE: Botanic Café Art Gallery, #126 St. 19
WHEN: 6pm July 23
WHY: Artwork with a conscience