Education Program
Community Youth Outreach Workshop:
Pet Portraits with Peace for the Streets by Kids from the Streets, January, 2012
In early January, Art for Animals’ Sake presented an art workshop at the offices of Peace For the Streets by Kids from the Streets (PSKS), a Seattle organization providing support to area homeless youth and young adults. With a room full of clients and their canine companions, it was surprisingly tranquil as everyone focused on creating painted portraits of their pets.
Sky with her portrait in progress and the final painting.
Homeless youth and young adults sometimes adopt puppies and kittens to supply surrogate love and a sense of family that is often absent on the street. As our volunteer teacher Meredith remarked, “It was so inspiring to see how people who had just met could come together and form immediate bonds by connecting through art and a shared love of animals."
Aimed at fostering a sense of pride in the creative process, the workshop attendees learned how to use paint and canvas to express the connection with their animal companions. The proof of this unique bond is evident in each of the imaginative portraits.
The second day concluded with a visit from Heather, Niki, and Solomon from Animal Aid & Rescue Foundation (AARF). Solomon, a gentle dog who won over everyone in the room, had recently been the victim of abuse resulting in the amputation of one of his legs. The three representatives from AARF helped facilitate a dialogue about animal health, welfare, and responsible ownership.
Heather, Solomon and Niki from AARF. Solomon made friends with everyone and is available for adoption through AARF.
AAS believes that through education we can encourage empathy for all living beings, thereby preventing abusive behavior toward animals. We are dedicated to educating underserved populations about animal health, welfare, compassion, and responsible guardianship. It was evident in this workshop that through art, education, and a desire to learn, we can build a more responsible and empathetic community.
Read more here about our educational program here...
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An Exclusive Interview with Kristin Bauer of HBO's hit series True Blood.
Kristin spoke exclusively with AAS about her activism, art and passion for exposing the unnecessary animal suffering that occurs in cruel laboratory experiments.
'True Blood's Kristin Bauer Stands Up for Animal Rights'
Though she is known to legions of television fans as a vampire on HBO’S “True Blood,” actress Kristin Bauer’s true passions include animal rights, and for the past few years she’s been doing all she can to right the wrongs of unnecessary medical testing on chimpanzees in America.
Xaque Gruber of Art For Animals’ Sake had the pleasure of chatting with the actress-artist-activist about her most recent efforts to use her celebrity to bring awareness to the cruelty experienced by animals in laboratories across the nation.
AAS: I love your True Blood character, Vampire Pam. She’s so dark and wounded.
KB: Isn’t she great? I love that – ‘dark and wounded!’ And we’ve added the ‘wounded.’ I really like that she was just dark before, but now we get a little more of the backstory and understand her.
AAS: A lot of True Blood fans I know are into the same good things and causes you feature on your web site, and I think it’s cool how you can use this spooky vampiric world as a way to promote a healthier world for ourselves.
KB: Isn’t that sort of fabulous and ironic? I didn’t know I was going to get so much support. I mean the fans are very passionate and loyal about True Blood, but also about helping all of us do our causes.
AAS: Your web site is fantastic and really taught me a lot about you. You can’t really understand a person from generic things written about them on Wikipedia or IMDb.
KB: I had sites built for me before but they just weren’t personal, and I put a lot of energy into this one.
AAS: There’s one line you have on there in reference to your love for animals and nature: “Life getting to be life.” And it resonated with me as being at the heart of your work with freeing chimpanzees.
The interview continues here...
View our featured organizations
Since 2009, AAS has been successful in promoting animal rescue organizations through collaborations with artists, producing exhibitions and raising donations through special community events.
Old Dog Haven
'Old Dog Haven's costs for vet care are huge and growing steadily as we take in more old dogs who need medical attention. The donation from Art for Animals' Sake is a significant contribution toward those expenses.' - Judith Piper, Executive Director, Old Dog Haven
Northwest Organization for Animal Help (N.O.A.H.), Stanwood, WA
Art for Animlas' Sake raised donations through our inaugral art exhibition and silent auction event. Funds raised at the event helped N.O.A.H. with its important mission of animal rescue, adoption, and pet population control through spaying and neutering.
We believe in building a community through collaboration
Art for Animals' Sake provides exposure for participating artists and animal advocates through timely content and projects which are meaningful to both groups. AAS will be a gathering place for those who are looking for information about animal advocacy and organizations wanting to collaborate and exchange ideas.
