Friday, February 8, 2013

Brown Bag Art

Visit the small, but mighty, Studio 4 of Workhouse Arts Center and you will find gallery walls overtaken by over 1,300 brown paper lunch bags. The bags can only mean one thing. The 2nd Annual Have a Heart Project--an artistic twist on the common (and vital) food drive--is underway. This artistic venture, organized by The Art Monkeys, benefits Food for Others, Inc., the largest distributor of free food directly to people in need in Northern Virginia.
Last year's Have a Heart Project, garnered considerable attention from local media and was the subject of a documentary by young filmmaker, Makeda Thomas. The exhibit challenged the community to help Studio 4 artists fill an "empty kitchen" art installation and successfully raised over 750 lbs. of non-perishable food for Food for Others during its month-long run.


This year's installation opened to the public on Wednesday, February 6, 2013. Studio 4's exhibit space has been transformed by 1,325 empty lunch bags featuring original art works created by an array of resident and guest artists. Each of the unique lunch bag works of art in the exhibit can be obtained by making a $10 donation, 100% of which will benefit Food for Others. As the artists replace each sold piece of art with food purchased with the donation, the installation will continually evolve throughout the gallery. An opening reception will take place on Saturday, February 9, from 6 to 9pm, in Studio 4 (Building W-4) of the Workhouse Arts Center in Lorton, VA.
"This year's exhibit is a great opportunity for new and seasoned collectors alike to get their hands on original art at an incredibly low price while making a difference." says participating artist and co-organizer MG Stout.
The public can also be a part of this exciting art installation to help Northern Virginians in need by donating canned or non-perishable food items during Studio 4's normal business hours: Wednesday to Saturday from 11 am - 7 pm, and Sunday from noon - 5 pm. Donations will be welcome through the exhibit's run, Wednesday, February 6 - Sunday, March 3, 2013.

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