Steffanie Lorig
Art with Heart
LorigLand
2004 & 2008 Grant Recipient
2006 Judge
In 2003, Steffanie became the first full-time founding director of Art with Heart, which had just won its first Ideas that Matter grant. Steffanie was an Ideas that Matter judge in 2006 and Art with Heart was also a 2008 recipient of an Ideas that Matter grant for a new book to help teens and tweens who are affected by illness.
“In general, Ideas that Matter judges look for cause worthiness. They consider a variety of elements before awarding a grant, including the ability of a project to make a difference, the quality of design, how the project supports the mission of organization, how many people the project touches, and how the project communicates a call to action, which is a very important consideration.
When I was a judge, I was looking for more than merely ‘pretty.’ I was looking for entries that would have a direct impact on recipients’s lives. I wanted to see good design thinking — taking a great concept, and applying it in a way that is of direct service.
Others that impressed me were projects where designers had a history with the organizations they wanted to help. They knew enough about them to know what the organizations really needed; what would enable them to make big leaps forward. They had a perspective that only history can lend.”
