Book about the Urban Ministry Center Neighbors

In 1995, Ben Long was in Charlotte painting the fresco for the Bank of America building. As he painted at night, many of the neighbors watched. Ben became very interested in the neighbors and the plight of the homeless and subsequently donated his time to sketch portraits of the neighbors. These pictures have been published in a book with stories written by Mark Paradis, "Bread and Circuses: Sketches from the Old Seaboard Soup Kitchen". The book was made available for $25 with the proceeds going to the Urban Ministry Center.

About Ben Long

Ben Long is a native North Carolinian who has divided his time between Europe and America since he left Vietnam in 1970. After his tour of duty he entered the studio of Maestro Pietro Anigoni in Florence, Italy, where he apprenticed for eight years, learning the art of fresco. Ben has painted hundreds of portraits, which hang in collections on both sides of the Atlantic; he has executed fresco decorations in Italy and America; and his landscape and studio work has been exhibited since the 1970s in Italy, France, England, and the United States. He and his family live in Charlotte and the south of France.