sos art cincinnati

SOS (Save Our Souls) ART Cincinnati :

SOS ART’s History:

SOS ART, founded in 2003, began as both an art exhibit and an art festival with related events and publications concerning issues of peace and justice by Greater Cincinnati Artists. The annual art event grew to include, in addition to the works of established local artists, artwork of school children; also to engage children through classroom visits and workshops.

At the end of 2015 SOS ART gained a non-profit 501c3 status. It has since expanded its various activities through more art exhibits, more workshops and wider education programs, expanded publications, greater media presence and more dynamic public engagement around issues of peace and justice. SOS ART is currently expanding its activities with children linking the teaching and practice of art to the introduction of basic values in the youth

SOS ART’s Mission:

1) Encourage, promote and provide opportunities for the arts as dynamic vehicles for peace and justice
2) Encourage artists to use their art as their voice on issues of peace and justice that concern them, their community and the world
3) Facilitate the creation of a local community of artists who network and collaborate together using art as a means to impact issues of peace and justice in the community where they live
4) Use the arts to speak about, inform, educate and create a dialogue on issues of peace and justice and thus to bring about positive change
5) Use the arts to introduce basic values of peace and justice in the youth

SOS ART’s Vision:

Recognizing that Art can be a catalyst of change for a better world and that the artist plays an important role in this respect, SOS ART would like to:

1) See an increasing number of artists use their art away from the mere commodity aspect of their work to reflect more on issues that concern them and the world.

2) See the formation of a community of creative people who are committed to using artistic practice, education and public advocacy to effect positive change on issues of peace and justice in their community, their region and the world.

3) Succeed in instilling in children, from a very young age, values of peace and justice , compassion, tolerance and love, and this by introducing them through the teaching and practice of art.

 SOS ART’s Principles:

1) SOS ART’s engagement and work are local, i.e. in and for the Greater Cincinnati area
2) SOS ART is democratic, open equally to all Greater Cincinnati artists irrespective of their age, gender, background, ethnic origin, race, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, socioeconomic status, academic achievements…
3) SOS ART aims at promoting the voice and the message of the artist and not the artist’s notoriety and/or sellability
4) SOS ART is money free:

a) Artists who participate in its exhibitions or its publications do not pay to do so;

b) Artists who perform in its festivals are not paid and donate freely their time and talents
c) SOS ART’s activities are all open and free to the public
d) SOS ART’s publications are given free to all participating artists, also to local public, university and school libraries
e) SOS ART believes that gratuity is an important value being lost in our society, that it needs to be restored, cultivated and disseminated, and that reward does not have to be in terms of money but rather in the joy of giving and sharing. SOS ART also believes that money is one of the main reasons for the lack of peace and justice in our world.

This site highlights the work of SOS ART Cincinnati, which sponsors a yearly SOS ART Show and Event of creative expressions for peace and justice; the yearly publication of “For a Better World: Book of Poems and Drawings on Peace and Justice by Greater Cincinnati Artists”; various exhibitions, publications and educational programs focused on peace and justice.

Visit the Opportunities page for upcoming events and upcoming opportunities for artists and poets.

Visit the Gallery where we will highlight visual works of our participating artists.

Read our Religious Peacemakers posts which feature Greater Cincinnati individuals who use their faith and religious beliefs as promoters for peace and justice and for a better world.

Support us by Donating your time and/or money to help us achieve our mission.

 Contact us for more information.

This site and the work therein, some of which represents the works of individual artists who retain copyright, is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License. For any inquiries about potential re-use of content, Contact Saad Ghosn at SOS ART Cincinnati.