Steffanie Lorig, Andrew Wicklund and Jeanean Jacobs

Art with Heart

Grant Awarded: $20,000

Art with Heart empowers young people to deal with crisis through creative publications and programs that foster self-expression. It began as the community outreach brand of the Seattle chapter of AIGA.

In 2003, it became its own charitable non-profit organization benefiting youth on a national basis. Art with Heart validates feelings and rebuilds broken spirits, giving children emotional healing and strength to face another day despite their burdens.

The idea behind the journal was to give the kids a place to articulate and transform the issues they are dealing with through creative expression. The design concept was to choose “hip” artists that the kids would recognize – in order to visually relate to this hard-to-reach population. The book has a balance of printed and black sheets, to allow the kids to utilize their imaginations and explore the answers to the questions and activities found in the journal.

20,000 journals will be printed. To spread the word, public relations will be utilized in hospitals already distributing Art with Heart’s ‘Oodles of Doodles for Your Noodle’ art therapy activity book. Psychologists and mental health care practitioners will also be targeted.