Loving yourself is the catalyst to living a big and beautiful life. The more you love, the more you want to share.
That quote is a precursor to just one of the inspirational stories being shared through The Love Umbrella Project, an art campaign and exhibition created to illuminate Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»in what sometimes feels like the loneliest month of the year: February.
The project, created by interior designer Kelly Deck, has partnered 13 organizations/communities with 13 professional photographers and one writer. Each partnership is tasked with creating a visual narrative through photos that expresses how love illuminates their community. Over the 13 days leading up to Valentines Day (starting Feb. 1), a new photo or photos and an accompanying story is released to the project web site.
The common thread throughout the photos are red, vibrant, heart-shaped umbrellas meant to represent hope, joy and love, said Carla Mitchell, Edelmans senior account executive with the project, in a media release.
The Love Umbrella Project culminates in an exhibition and silent auction on Valentines Day (Feb. 14; RSVP by Feb. 10), 6 to 9:30pm at 848 West Hastings St., where photos will be available for purchase.
All proceeds will be donated to Leave Out Violence (LOVE), a Â鶹´«Ã½Ó³»organization dedicated to preventing youth violence.
Visit to see the photo series and learn more about the event.