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Guitarist
Uses Music to Introduce Fine Arts- |
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As classical guitarist Christian Thomas Lee played a brief melody, the audience comprised of nearly 25 children listened intently. The musical introduction served as an ice breaker as the artist engaged the youths with song before spending the next 45 minutes sharing museum-quality artwork from his private collection. Lee is a renowned concert guitarist who, for more than 20 years, has played before former United States presidents, foreign heads of state and entertainment personalities. He performed today for the children at Buckner Children and Family Services. The performance was not the purpose of his visit, the reason he wanted an audience with the children was to bring the arts to children. "We have culturally bankrupted a generation of children who have never seen the insides of a museum," Lee said. "I try to provide an opportunity for students to view rare and priceless works of art as well as create and understanding of who these artists were and the contribution they made to the world." |
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 with the kids at Buckner Children's Center |
To achieve this goal, Lee displays the Czar's Tea-Glass Spoon, created by Peter Carl Faberge (1846-1920); the painting "Pour Bernard" by Pablo Picasso (1881-1973); the painting "Christ Delivering the Keys to Heaven to Peter" by Italian renaissance artist Giovanni Battista Pasqualini (1585-1635); and the painting of "Christ on the Mount of Olives." As he introduces a work of art, Lee shares the story behind the piece. And, throughout his presentation, Lee invites the children to talk about the work by asking questions and sharing anecdotes about his own upbringing. "When I was a child, I had a dream of being this famous guitarist and people would love me," Lee said. "I would practice for eight to 10 hours a day so that I could get better. And it paid off. But even after I played all around the world for so many people and made a lot of money, I still wasn't happy. |
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"Do you know why?" Lee asked the children. "Because I didn't know God. And that God loved me." Lee said he used his talent to generate funds so that he could purchase major artwork to use for his main project, Art in Schools. Arts in Schools is a private collection of fine art designed to benefit children. Lee tours the country to bring art into the schools for students who may never have the opportunity to visit a museum. For the children at Buckner's, Lee not only introduced them to a world of art and music, but he encouraged them to study the works of the artists featured in his presentation before his return trip "I have performed for thousands of children, and I hope that they find the artwork as inspiring as it was intended," Lee said. |
 The Christian Thomas Lee Collection of Fine Art |
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"Everyone should find a dream and never let it go," he said. "Dreams are the tiny seeds from which tomorrow grows." |