Cultural arts exhibit in Chapel Hill

Residents and visitors to Chapel Hill’s East Franklin Street will be able to attend and experience the cultural arts of the Tibetan Monks of the Drepung Gomang Monastery now located in Southern India. The program will begin with the creation of a Sacred Sand Mandala at 523 E. Franklin St. in Chapel Hill on May 22, completing their mandala in five days with a deconstruction ceremony on May 30. 523 East Franklin St. will be open to the public from May 22 to 30 to allow visitors and residents to observe the construction of the mandala by the monks, sign up for arts workshops given by the monks and attend a cultural pageant performance scheduled for May 28.
The monks have been coming to the United States for the past eight years, sponsored by Drepung Gomang Institute, a 501 (c ) (3) non-profit educational institute, located in Louisville, Ky. Local sponsorship with help from the Town of Chapel Hill Parks & Recreation Cultural Arts Division and donations from Chapel Hill and Orange County public and private organizations have made this event possible. We will begin taking advance online reservations for arts classes and other events Feb. 25 at www.monkstour.info .

The arts workshops, cultural pageants and Mandala exhibit have been organized to be family friendly. Volunteer opportunities are still available for people of all ages. To learn more about volunteering, go to www.monkstour.info/category_s/23.htm.