If you’re out and about in the community on March 12, you might come across a work of art needing a good home.
That date marks the third annual Art and Found Day, which includes 32 countries and 594 artists participating in this year’s event.
Courtney Senior launched the concept for Art and Found seven years ago while struggling to find her footing as an artist in Toronto.
She left her original artworks in different neighbourhoods, each wrapped with a tag on the front that said FREE ART #ArtandFound. Each piece also had a note: “Hello, I’m an original abstract painting in need of a loving home.”
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After receiving a surprising number of grateful responses from people during the first years and motivated by the impact her efforts had on the community, Senior started enlisting other artists to get involved.
Participants shared paintings, photographs, handmade items, music albums and other art forms, each wrapped and tagged with a note on the inside detailing information on the piece and the artist. It blossomed from there into an international event within a few years.
Senior chose March 12 because that was the day her father was killed in an accident, and working on the project became a significant help with her grieving and healing process.
Lynda Slater, a board member of the Sooke Arts Council, believes it’s time Sooke joined the movement.
“It’s a fun, free event. You don’t have to belong to an organization to participate, and there are not many events around like that these days.” Slater said.
“It’s a worldwide event, and this is the first time we’re trying it in Sooke. Getting involved will be a great time for the participating artists and fabulous for those who find their work.”
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Slater said the Sooke Arts Council is happy to promote this event and is busy meeting with local schools and community organizations, including the Amber Academy to get them involved.
“It would be great if we could get more communities on the Island involved as well. Just make sure your art is wrapped, has the hashtag on the outside, and is displayed so that it can be easily found.”
The tag should include FREE ART #ArtandFound at instagram.com/explore/tags/artandfound/.
Check out artandfoundday.com/artists-2023 for a look at the artists involved this year, and artandfoundday.com/about/ for more on the event. There’s also a link to a map that includes the locations of participating communities on Vancouver Island.
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