Arts Day of Giving to raise millions for the arts in SWPA
PITTSBURGH, PA - The Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council and The Pittsburgh Foundation have teamed up once again to support approximately 150 arts organizations and artists with Arts Day of Giving on Thursday, October 2, 2014 from 6am until midnight. Arts Day of Giving is an 18-hour online opportunity for citizens to log on to www.pittsburghgives.org and donate online to arts non-profits and each donation from $15 - $1,000 will be partially matched, making those dollars go even further. The previous Arts Day of Giving on May 11, 2011 raised nearly $1.9 million – Arts Day of Giving is an unprecedented showing of support for the region’s vibrant arts community that makes our region a great place to live, work and play.
Shares Mitch Swain, CEO of GPAC: “We want everyone to know that we have another championship team worth supporting, and that’s the arts. Arts and culture have played a vital role in our region’s redevelopment, specifically Pittsburgh’s downtown and neighborhoods, and we want to ensure the continued positive role the arts can play, in the future. The price of tickets doesn’t pay for the entertainment, but people do – we cannot rely upon government, corporate sources and Pittsburgh’s rich foundation legacy to support the arts alone. The important piece of the pie is our citizenry and individual giving, and that’s what Arts Day of Giving is all about – Pittsburgh’s civic pride.” Arts Day of Giving supports GPAC member organizations in the following counties: Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Butler, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Lawrence, Washington, and Westmoreland. Arts Day of Giving is sponsored by the Greater Pittsburgh Arts Council and The Pittsburgh Foundation with the match fund provided by The Heinz Endowments.
New to ArtDOG is the Unleashed Artists Fund. Five GPAC artist members were randomly selected at Unleashed! Artist Party + Dog Fashion Show for the Unleashed Artists Fund, a special fund established to support five working artists. On Arts Day of Giving, donors can log on to www.pittsburghgives.org and support artists Mike McSorley (painting), Shaunda Miles (theater), Sherri Roberts (fiber), Brian Sesack (photography) and Lorraine Vullo (installation).
The Unleashed Artists Fund is supported by hungry citizens chowing down at Franktuary, with their ArtDOG menu item - a hot dog presented on an artist’s palette with colorful condiments in the paint wells. $1 from each ArtDOG supports the Fund. For yet more fun, there is the ArtDOG Meme Contest. And, ArtDOG is represented by Theo, the adorable adoptable dog from Animal Friends, in his Arts Day of Giving costume.