While art-making may be an important part in many people’s lives, making the leap to showing or selling art can be intimidating, especially for lower-income artists. Art From the Heart has been working to change this for the last 14 years, and this year is no different.

“We try to remove as many barriers to participation, for example, by not charging an entry fee and by allowing the artists to keep 100 per cent of sales. We also go out of our way to help people get their artworks to us, and to get them matted and ready for the sale, because some of our members do not have transportation or are homeless,” says Carole O’Brien, coordinator for Art From the Heart.

This year’s show includes 120 artists across a wide array of media, from paintings, sketches, and watercolours, to sculptures and other three-dimensional work, as well as textiles.

This year will be Ildiko Nova’s third year in Art From the Heart. She got involved after helping out with a community mosaic at Red Road Lodge when she was new to Winnipeg, having just moved from Toronto.

“[This] event is special for me because of the warmth and welcoming atmosphere of the community and organizers. [Some] artists see each other annually at this show; it is always a very pleasant encounter,” says Nova.

The atmosphere at the show has inspired artists like photographer Andrew Lane to join in.

“After going to [last year’s show by] Art From the Heart, I think the atmosphere in the place and the people who were participating inspired me to think of my own creativity and how I might be able to express myself artistically,” says Lane.

Lane’s experience affirms O’Brien’s hopes for this event: beyond their mission of “addressing economic and social imbalances in our community,” the show will also help to validate artists’ experiences and skills, and make them feel included in a community.