My name is Ruth and I'm a rug and textile designer and found myself at a loss at the beginning of the pandemic when our weaving mills in India and Nepal closed and my business came to a grinding halt leaving me with a lot of time on my hands. To stay creative and with the intention of giving back, I started painting and handcrafting little heart keepsakes called "Hearts of Hope" which I gifted to frontline workers and those who were struggling and and just needed some acknowledgement and kindness. People loved the idea of spreading kindness and hope within their own communities and wanted to purchase the hearts to gift themselves. Seeing the positive impact these little heart keepsakes - created in my own signature abstract artistic style - had on others as well as the incredible opportunity I had to spread kindness, I decided to run with this initiative and Art of Hope was born. Now, by selling my Hearts of Hope, together with my wonderful and incredibly generous community, I have been able to spread hope and kindness to many communities both in Australia and abroad. I am extremely proud and humbled to have been able to donate and mail out over 20,000 Hearts of Hope over the past three years to many people who really needed them. Art of Hope is a reminder that you too can make someone’s day just a little bit brighter - even the smallest gesture of kindness and acknowledgment really does have the power to make a huge impact! As Art of Hope has grown I have made the conscious decision to support small business in Australia so except for one of the components, the hearts are created, assembled, printed and packaged here in Sydney. When I started making Hearts of Hope it was my vision to provide work opportunities for disadvantaged people and this is all starting to come to fruition. I now have two wonderful creative businesses that feed my soul in so many ways and most importantly mean that I can bring beauty and joy into the world for others AND give back in many ways. Thank you so much for taking the time to read this and understand what Art of Hope is all about. I hope you will join the club, purchase some Hearts of Hope and choose to spread kindness, love and hope too. It's truly the best feeling in the world!
