In the midst of challenges presented by the covid-19 pandemic, Birmingham-based nonprofit Studio By The Tracks has opted to move Art From The Heart, their biggest fundraising event of the year, to a completely online format, allowing people from anywhere in the world an opportunity to enjoy artwork from their studio and community artists.

Studio By The Tracks provides adult artists on the autism spectrum access to a creative career path.  Their artists use the studio’s space and materials to create and are represented by the studio in their onsite gallery, their online web store, and their annual art auction event, receiving 60% of all sales of their artwork.  All of SBTT’s services are offered at no cost.  The studio also serves children enrolled in residential treatment programs for severe emotional disorders with weekly culture based art curriculum.

Studio By The Tracks has innovatively adapted their programs since their onsite gallery were forced to close earlier this year with the onset of the pandemic.  The studio is arranging for no-contact pickup or delivery of art supplies to their 60+ studio artists.  The studio’s adult artists enjoy regular check-ins with their instructors, and their children’s program is now administered via video conferencing.  Monthly web-based art shows have allowed the studio’s adult artists to continue receiving a revenue stream from art sales.

This year’s virtual attendees of Art From The Heart will have the option to view, purchase, and bid on over 300 pieces of artwork created by SBTT’s studio artists as well as donating artists from the studio’s larger community, many of whom are well-known and widely collected, from August 20-23 by.  Access to the online auction is free of cost, unless you choose to purchase an Advanced Viewing ticket.  These advanced ticket holders will receive a link by August 13th to access to view the artwork an entire week before bidding begins, which allows for plenty of time to view the 200+ auction pieces and plan their bidding strategy.  Once the general access bidding opens at 12pm on Thursday, August 20th, attendees can place bids from anywhere until bidding closes at 8pm on Sunday, August 23rd.  “We feel that we’ve worked out some very exciting, creative solutions that will make this year’s Art From The Heart meaningful and successful,” says Katie Thompson, Director of Community Partnerships at Studio By The Tracks. “I’m very confident that the changes we’ve been forced to embrace will make our organization stronger and more accessible,” she says.  You can find out more information about this year’s Art From The Heart event at studiobythetracks.org/artfromtheheart

Suzanne Boozer, Executive Director of Studio By The Tracks says, “Now, more than ever, it’s important for our studio’s sustainability to make this year’s event successful, and we hope that by hosting this event virtually, we can reach a wider audience than we ever have and introduce our amazing artists to people who may have never gotten the chance to attend our event in person, and we can do it in a way that’s really fun and safe.  Art is such a powerful healing and therapeutic tool, whether you’re creating it yourself or just enjoying someone else’s creation, and we hope that we can share that experience with you!”

Learn more about Studio By the Tracks at StudioByTheTracks.org and stay up to date on further details through the following channels:

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