Art Avenue to Host Art Auction

March 16, 2022 – Sarasota

Art Avenue is pleased to announce it will be hosting Hands Up for Homes! An Art Auction Benefitting Second Heart Homes, Inc. The live auction will take place Saturday, March 26, from 6pm to 9pm, at Art Avenue’s 1440 Main Street location in downtown Sarasota. Guests can park for free by the Selby Library or in Whole Food’s second-story ramp. 

The auction’s show piece is a stunning painting created and donated by local artist Vicki Chelf to support Second Heart Homes’ mission. The painting is a continuation of Chelf’s series, “Women of the Resistance,” which honors women who have contributed via secret spies to help the Resistance during WWII. The piece, titled “Second Heart Angel,” depicts Second Heart Homes founder Megan Howell as a local contemporary woman of resistance who is leading the charge to end homelessness in Sarasota.

“We are grateful to Vicki Chelf, Art Avenue owner Paul Sykes and all of the incredibly talented and generous artists who have contributed to making our first fundraising event a success,” said Second Heart Homes Board Chair David Welle. 

Guests will be able to bid on more than ten art pieces, including limited edition prints, and a piece created by one of their clients, while enjoying wine, hors d’oevres and live jazz by Ruffus. The event is free to the public. Supporters who are unable to attend the event can double their donations up to $500 through the Flanzer matching gift program at secondhearthomes.org.  All proceeds go to Second Heart Homes, a local nonprofit that provides housing and high-touch supportive services to homeless men and women with mental health issues. 

“Hands Up for Homes! encourages both bidders and donors to ‘give a hand up, rather than a hand out,’ so that we can reduce the impact of chronic homelessness on our community resources while getting our homeless adults off the street and back into the lives they deserve,” said Megan Howell, founder and executive director for Second Heart Homes.