Alpha 137 Gallery announces an artist Open Call and online charity art exhibition to benefit Best Friends Animal Society. Many pets have been helping us through the COVID-19 crisis, but many have also been left homeless due to changing circumstances brought on by the pandemic. In an effort to help raise funds for animals in need, Alpha 137 Gallery announces an open call to working artists - sculptors, painters, printmakers, and mixed media artists - currently residing in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, and Pennsylvania - for original works created any time after March 1, 2020 that pay homage to their critter companions that have helped them get through the COVID-19 quarantines, lockdowns and re-openings. 

Entries will be juried by renowned art historian and critic, David Cohen, the publisher and editor of artcritical.com. The works he selects will be exhibited and offered for sale on Alpha 137 Gallery’s website, as well as its Artsy and Artnet galleries, and/or other venues.  Proceeds from the  Pets of the Pandemic exhibition will be split evenly between the winning artists and Best Friends Animal Society. There is no entrance fee, and Alpha 137 Gallery will not be taking any commission. Most of these original, unique art works will be priced between $500 to $700 dollars each to make them accessible to a wide variety of pet lovers and art collectors. 

Pets of the Pandemic is the brainchild of art advisor, gallerist, and proud cat mom, Nadine Witkin, who enlisted the project management assistance of recent Harvard MBA graduate Ayse Baybars through the group “MBA’s Fight Covid-19”. In a statement, Witkin said,  “We are delighted that David Cohen has volunteered to judge Pets of the Pandemic, as he is one of the most respected art critics in New York  - as well as a pet lover whose dog Allegra is well known to his followers. So at prices of only $500-700 for each original artwork that David chooses, collectors will be able to snag a real bargain from this expertly curated exhibition - all while helping a worthy pet charity. It’s a win-win.”

Regarding the inspiration behind the project, Nadine Witkin explained,  “My father, a modernist sculptor who died in 2006, lived in a remote blueberry farm with seven shelter animals who helped him get through isolation, illness - and even the aftermath of the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. Because of that, I was especially touched by the countless stories of pets who have been helping artists get through today’s COVID-19 crisis - and I thought a “Pets of the Pandemic” art exhibition would be a wonderful  way to celebrate these special relationships . The project was conceived during the lockdowns, so we limited participation to artists residing in nearby states - New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Connecticut, but we’ve gotten such an enthusiastic response,  we hope to be able to host a “Pets of the Pandemic II” open to artists nationwide.” 

Submissions are accepted beginning today and will remain open until Thursday, July 23, 2020 at 11:59PM ET. The Pets of the Pandemic exhibition will open for sale on Tuesday, September 1, 2020 at 10.00 AM ET. and the exhibition will run concurrently on  Artsy, Artnet and Alpha 137 Gallery.

Visit Alpha 137 Gallery on Instagram (@alpha137gallery).