GET ENCHANTED

The Audrey Hepburn Children's Fund and the Love & Art Children's Foundation have joined together to support an inspirational program honoring children's artistic expression called "Enchanted".  When Tastybaby picked up the Enchanted book and saw the whimsical pieces of artwork, we were delighted!  After further reading the stories of where the artwork came from, we were touched and inspired.  The collection of artwork includes 24 paintings created by children ages 6-13 in treatment at Hollygrove, a family services agency which provides outpatient mental health services and enrichment programs to at-risk children in Los Angeles.  Hollygrove is formerly the orphanage where Marilyn Monroe lived.

 For more than six months the Love & Art Children's Foundation worked with 24 children ranging in ages from 6 to 13. Large canvases, paint and a variety of three dimensional objects were given to the children to create original mixed media paintings. This art was created one day at a time, one child at a time, a process that allowed the natural development of inspiration and exploration of each child's innate artistic talent.  Love & Art’s first art program was held in Paris in 2007 and brought in $400,000+ benefiting children in treatment for life threatening cancer.

The canvases were on exhibit at Christie’s in Beverly Hills from September 8-20 where an opening night party was held on September 8, hosted by Irena and Mike Medavoy.

There will be an exclusive dinner and auction of the Enchanted Art Collection on Thursday, October 2, 2008, 7pm at Paramount Pictures, Hollywood.  The event will be hosted by Rob Reiner, with the live auction by Andrea Fiuczynski, President, Christie's Los Angeles and will benefit Hollygrove, a 501(c)3 organization.  If you are interested in learning more about this event, please call 310.393.5286 or email: events@loveandart.org

 Love & Art Children's Foundation was founded in 2003 in Los Angeles was born out of the desire to honor children's artistic expression.  Love & Art reaches out to children in need around the world to offer them, through the arts, a way of expression and empowerment.  To give value to their artworks, Love & Art organizes exhibitions around their creations and their stories.  Through these exhibitions the foundation wishes to awaken the consciousness of the beauty and profoundness of children's artistic expression, bring awareness to their causes and fundraise for them.  To learn more, visit Love & Art.

Hollygrove was founded in 1880 when two brave women rescued twelve homeless orphans from the streets of downtown Los Angeles. Hollygrove has stood as a symbol of healing and compassion for the most vulnerable of our city's children.The organization provides vital mental health and family supportive services to LA's at-risk children. They are recognized for innovative, family-centered programs that help children recover from crisis and rebuild their lives. They believe in helping children at the first signs of trouble rather than waiting until they need to be removed from their homes and communities.  Creative arts are a cornerstone of Hollygrove's therapeutic services. Painting, music, theater, writing and filmmaking help children to build self-esteem, discover their unique talents, improve school performance and develop healthy friendships. To learn more, visit Hollygrove.org.