Art with Heart had a presence at this year’s 3-day, national Child Life Conference for the 4th year in a row.

Child life specialists work with hospitalized children to help them cope emotionally through play, education, and self-expression activities. Art with Heart’s books are a perfect fit for their work, complimenting their mission and giving them the tools to help even the most reluctant child.

While there, we met the folks at the Alicia Rose Victorious Foundation, an organization that helps bring hope, excitement, and entertainment to teens that are facing difficult medical conditions. She was so impressed with our Chill & Spill therapeutic journal, that she purchased 500 to put in their “Teen Kits” that they give to newly-admitted and diagnosed teenagers with life-threatening illnesses. The kits contain “comfort items” to help meet teen’s unique needs during their in-patient stay at a hospital and make them feel less isolated. We are thrilled to know that 500 teens are going to benefit from this amazing collaboration!

The gallery opening for the teen Chill & Spill artists was so very gratifying. A local restaurant hosted a pizza party before the event for the youth and their families. Then we walked to nearby Gallery, where the teens were amazed to find that their artwork had the best spot in the house!

The self-portraits were created in Art with Heart’s Chill & Spill class by students at an alternative school for those who had failed out of the public school system). It was wonderful to see how extremely proud they were of their accomplishments. Terrone (top right) and Charles (bottom right) both were interviewed by a local cable TV show about their artwork. Both students enjoyed the limelight.

Art with Heart has been invited back to continue the Chill & Spill class during the Spring quarter and we are very grateful to the Kismet Foundation for making this possible. The artwork is up through May 24th.

In this Skill-Building Workshop, fabric artist and craftswoman, Wendy S., led the hands-on activity from Chill & Spill called “Fly Away,” a strength-building exercise designed to help youth realize the importance of self-care and nurturing. Over the years, Art with Heart has received generous donations of fabric and yarns. We utilized them for this project, which we began after a visualization exercise.

The group was a mix of artists and therapists, most of who had little experience using fabric in any way whatsoever. So, this was a challenging medium.

Attendees created amazing works of art, but more importantly, they discovered things about themselves that hadn’t been apparent before.

This is the second time that Blank Canvas has chosen to benefit Art with Heart. And, as before, it was an amazing event!

It was a day-long affair, beginning with teams of architects, interior designers and creative professionals — brought together to create spontaneous, collaborative and original pieces of art.

The event cumulated in the evening with a live and silent auction, with the winning bidders bringing home wonderfully inspired masterpieces, with all the proceeds benefiting Art with Heart’s work on behalf of children in crisis!

Blank Canvas is an effort to inspire self-expression and impact communities through art and brings together a team of creative individuals who believe that a charitable contribution can be more than monetary; that the inspiration to dive into the creative process can come from one’s desire to have a positive impact on their community.

The Second Annual Very Sheri Art Collective Shopping Event took place this last weekend with over 30 indie artisans who showcased their incredible work. Offerings ranged from ceramics to handcrafted jewelry to mosaics to everything in between.

Long-time supporter and event organizer Sheri H. (far left) created the event for the purpose of promoting unique Northwest talent as well as her favorite charity, Art with Heart.

The event is in its second year. If you missed this year, DON’T miss next year…it’s sure to be a huge hit!