The Art of Giving - Luxury meets Charity

The Art of Giving - A Beautiful Way to Give Well and Give Back

Art - beauty - charity - they strike a chord deep inside us. Combine exquisite art, acclaimed charities and a desire to make a meaningful difference and you have The Art of Giving, www.taog.org. The Art of Giving, (TAOG.org) follows a simple principle – art enriches life and art for charity enriches life immeasurably.

The Art of Giving is an online gallery, offering hand selected art and jewelry to raise funds for four outstanding charities; Mercy Corps, Room to Read, Oregon Humane Society and Oregon Food Bank. Customers receive a charitable deduction for each purchase and select the charity they wish to support. Each of these charities receives the highest ratings from Charity Navigator. TAOG’s charity partners provide economic and disaster relief in the most desperate parts of the world, build schools and libraries internationally where books and schools are scarce, find homes for approximately 96% of the animals that come through their shelter, and provide food aid to families in crisis and keep 16-million pounds of food from being wasted annually.

“We are grateful to The Art of Giving for stepping up to help people around the world who are coping with the toughest conditions imaginable,” said Mercy Corps CEO Neal Keny-Guyer. “Through this beautiful art, The Art of Giving is giving new opportunity to those who are struggling to survive and build a more hopeful future for their children. Mercy Corps is fortunate to have The Art of Giving’s support.”

Among TAOG’s featured artists is Allison Stern whose extraordinary jewelry has been featured at the Museum of Modern Art, Saks, Neiman Marcus, and Twist. Allison spent time in Italy with the prestigious Rhode Island School of Design’s program honing her craft and studying with renowned architect Frank Gehry. Allison no longer designs jewelry, making each piece a unique treasure. Her exquisite jewelry is only available on The Art of Giving website and in private collections.

In addition to exquisite art, TAOG is about creating community, a community of artists and charities, all working towards a common goal to make a difference through gifts that truly keep on giving. TAOG artists primarily from range from seasoned artists whose work has won national accolades to emerging artists whose work deserves greater recognition.

Sharon Graugnard-Fall, Principal of Volant Strategies, in Portland, Oregon is the founder of The Art of Giving. In these challenging economic times Ms. Graugnard-Fall hopes the charitable incentive combined with receiving a tax deduction will entice people, who otherwise might not, to give well and give back. “What could be better than buying a beautiful piece of jewelry or work of art knowing that your purchase extends far beyond yourself to help others truly in need,” said Ms. Graugnard-Fall.