2016 Art Restart Holiday Collection

DENVER — Halloween is over and now the holiday season ensues bringing a celebration of happiness to share with loved ones. Art Restart has the perfect holiday card collection to make family, friends, business associates, customers, and all those near-and-dear feel special. With an Art Restart card you can express holiday wishes with a purpose — helping women who are experiencing poverty.

“No time of year inspires the sentiments of love, caring and generosity quite like the holiday season,” said Teresa Densmore, Director of Art Restart. “This year, we’ve truly topped ourselves with the most unique assortment of greeting cards featuring original art, created by members of The Gathering Place. There’s a card for every person on your list. 

Art Restart is a social enterprise of The Gathering Place, Denver’s only daytime drop-in center for women, their children, and transgender individuals who are seeking programming and necessary services to help them become self-sufficient.  For nearly 30 years, it has been a place of hope where positive relationships and essential resources transform lives every day. 

Densmore says, “The Art Restart program provides opportunities for women who are experiencing poverty to transform their lives through art.  As Art Restart artists, they receive royalties when their art is chosen by companies and individuals, while the rest of the proceeds from each sale go back to The Gathering Place to assist with the furthering of programs and services.  You literally can do good without much effort.” 

Companies like Vectra Bank are using Art Restart cards as a demonstration of their commitment to corporate social responsibility.  “Not only do Art Restart cards meet communication needs for our business and individual customers, but it’s also an easy way to help others,” says Densmore.

Bruce Alexander, president and CEO of Vectra Bank says, “When The Gathering Place launched Art Restart as its social enterprise, we just knew Vectra had to be a part of this endeavor…   We’re so proud to have been Art Restart’s first client and thrilled to be able to share their story and our warm holiday wishes with our clients and prospects through their cards each year.”

The 2016 Holiday Collection features original art that portrays beautiful scenes of holiday and winter.  Most notable are Gold Trees by EHS, Mountain Cornucopia by JJJ, and Snow Storm by VEC.  “The initials of the artists are used here because of the need to respect the privacy of our members, many who are victims of domestic violence,” said Densmore.  “And there is no reason companies cannot get the jump on 2017 holidays by ordering cards from this collection now,” she added.

Art Restart was conceived to develop new revenue streams to support the vitally needed services The Gathering Place provides and is built on four principles. 1) Transformation: artists earn royalties on sales of their art securing an income that can help lead to self-sufficiency. 2) Expression: artists use our safe space for creative self-expression. 3) Affirmation: our women are truly artists and with every sale, and gain self-confidence which positively affects their lives. 4) Sustainability: to provide additional funding to The Gathering Place, ensuring it can continue to serve members in meaningful ways. 

“It is a creative way for businesses to demonstrate a commitment to being socially responsible and directly help women who are experiencing poverty,” says Densmore.  “Our catalog features 100 unique images created by more than 20 talented artists who earn money to help them put their lives back together and get on solid ground financially and emotionally. “

Through Art Restart, The Gathering Place licenses artists’ designs, reproduces and sells them for commercial usage. The benefits of this effort accrue to helping women who are experiencing poverty to get back to a place of feeling self-worth and economic stability.

Launched in 2014, Art Restart’s strategy is to provide corporations and individuals with a valuable product to keep in touch with customers, friends and family while also supporting a social cause.  Each card is customizable and co-branded with company logos and personalized messages. Through the sale of high-end, large quantity reproductions of the art created by local women and transgender individuals, large companies, small businesses, politicians, entrepreneurs, foundations, and organizations are purchasing cards for all types of occasions.  Holidays, birthdays, wedding packages, thank you notes, and more can be customized and co-branded with The Gathering Place, communicating a combined business and socially responsible message directly with key audiences.

“It sends a powerful message to an organization’s audience about who they are,” says Densmore. “If we know anything about consumers and commercial customers today, it is this:  when given a choice between virtually equal service and product options, almost 90 percent will choose the one that links to a social mission,” she continued.

To learn more about the 2016 Art Restart collection, contact [email protected] or call 303-996-9034.

About The Gathering Place

The Gathering Place (TGP) created Art Restart as a social enterprise to provide its members with opportunities to earn money and to build earned revenues.  For 30 years, TGP has offered essential resources and personal growth programs to women, children, and transgender individuals during the day.

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