Art with Heart has helped some 60,000 children deal with the stress and strain of hardship since our founding 15 years ago. We are well known in the Seattle community and nationwide for our work in expressive art therapy, including the creation and distribution of our therapeutic books and supportive trainings for caregivers to help children in distress.

In May 2011, an art gallery opened in Pioneer Square, near our location, using the name “Art with a Heart” that resulted in confused vendors, donors, community partners, and volunteers. We repeatedly and respectfully asked the gallery owners to change their gallery’s name for months, but they refused every time. As a result, we retained pro bono legal counsel who assisted us in taking legal action to prevent infringement of our trademark and trade name. The King County Superior Court ruled that their gallery’s use of ‘Art with a Heart’ constituted trademark infringement and permanently prohibited the gallery from using that name, along with derivatives. As of this writing, the gallery owners have not fully complied with the Court’s order.

Today’s ruling follows other previous rulings from the same court and imposes financial penalties on the owners if they continue to exhibit willful noncompliance. In the previous court decisions, the King County judge has ruled repeatedly in favor of the nonprofit as the rightful owner of the trademark in question.

The gallery owners have attempted to harm the reputation of Art with Heart with disparaging remarks posted online and in numerous emails. In our 15+ year history, we have never experienced this kind of animosity – but this will not distract from our mission of helping fragile children facing crisis, such as after a diagnosis of cancer, a natural disaster, or the tragedy of a school shooting.

The posts in this blog are just a few examples of the healing we encourage to bring joy and creativity into the lives of children facing hardship. Thank you for your understanding and continued support.