An Interwoven Fabric

For our recent interview with Hassan, we were honored to make use of the beautiful artwork designed by Kristen Palana. As much as possible, we strive to create a virtual journey through our podcasts for listeners to understand the current situation in Myanmar to as great as extent as possible. In addition to hearing the authentic voices of so many activists, we include music, ambient sounds, poems, and much more to complement the audio experience. But we also take much consideration when designing the visual component of the template, and sometimes the image is worth fleshing out in greater detail.

As someone who spent many years in Myanmar, like so many others around the world, Kristen has been devastated by the recent news. Kristen describes the powerful meaning behind her work:

I'm an American/Portuguese citizen who lived and worked in Myanmar from 2016-2019. I have many friends as well as former students and colleagues there. This three finger salute contains eight longyi patterns in the background representing regions around the country. Patterns depicted in the background are from the Kachin, Mon, Karen, Naga, Bamar, Chin, Shan, and Arkan ethnic groups. This painting offers support, solidarity, and a hopeful wish for peace, safety, and better days ahead.

If you like the art, you can consider purchasing it from Ma Kalulu Studio, where all the proceeds will be donated to worthwhile causes. In addition, you’ll also know that your purchase is supporting the urgent needs that so many Burmese are now facing. Kirsten describes the donation as follows:

A portion of proceeds from all sales on my site go to support Food Assistance for Families in Myanmar spearheaded by friend and former neighbor in Yangon, Eva Bruce, and also The Aid Myanmar Society. Both projects are helping ordinary Myanmar citizens cope with the current Covid crisis as well as food shortages. Another easy way to show support for the Myanmar people during this difficult time, is by wearing or displaying the three finger salute as a shirt, bag, card, mug, or sticker.