Sonoma youth urged to get a heart - for art!

The third and final phase of the Sonoma Valley Arts Task Force’s HeART of Sonoma initiative will include the distribution of 600 8-inch wooden hearts at no cost to kids and teens. Additionally, for children that can’t afford art supplies, just over 250 art kits have been purchased, thanks to funding from the Sonoma Plein Air Foundation. Finished “heART” works will be displayed in public areas - including the front of homes, schools and businesses throughout Sonoma Valley.

The Initiative

The heART of Sonoma initiative started with 22 artists' heart installations in four locations: Boyes Hot Springs, the Sonoma Plaza, the Sonoma Community Center and the Sonoma Valley Chamber of Commerce. The second phase includes connecting artists with businesses for the launch of the Summer Arts Stroll, a self-guided, outdoor art-viewing experience July 25 through Aug. 31. The Task Force now invites Sonoma Valley youth to create and display a heart as part of the Summer Arts Stroll.

How It Works

Youth artists are encouraged to decorate both sides of their heart, take a picture and share it on social media using the hashtag #heARTofSONOMA and display it at their own home or return it to the Task Force to be displayed as part of the Summer Arts Stroll. Hearts turned into the Task Force will be given to assisted living facilities, firehouses, hospitals and essential services locations when the Summer Arts Stroll ends on Aug. 31.

“The Task Force believes that everyone is creative and we want to provide an easy and fun way to boost everyone’s spirits,” says Sonoma Valley Arts Task Force Co-Chair Connie Schlelein. “We are eager for our young artists to join us on our creative mission to enliven the streets, storefronts, schools, front yards, and sidewalks of Sonoma Valley.”

Free Materials

To ensure that all can participate regardless of financial circumstances, materials for this project are free -- thanks to the City of Sonoma, which provided funds to purchase the wooden hearts, and the Sonoma Plein Air Foundation, which provided funds for art supplies for art kits. The hearts and art kits were created by volunteers and will be distributed through local organizations and are also available to pick up at Art Escape and the Community Center while supplies last.