Art for Justice

Client: 'Art for Justice," a slient auction fundraiser to benefit Public Counsel, the nation's largest pro-bono public interest law firm. The event was hosted by the Los Angeles legal group, Russ, August & Kabat.

The Challenge: Art for Justice was scheduled for early 2006, as a fundraising event to help Public Counsel. Although the event featured prominent local artists and members of the Los Angeles legal community, it lacked recognizable celebrity names or the sensational interest that Los Angeles reporters have come to expect.

However, the event was significant to the art and legal community and developed to raise money for an organization helping people in need - Public Counsel. We needed to "pack the house" with attendees interested in purchasing art to benefit a worthy cause.

We had less than one month to resolve the apathy issue.

Solution: Pitch, pitch, pitch. Ignoring the traditional holiday slowdown, we called reporters and followed up each call with a targeted media alert outlining the event. We specifically targeted smaller community publications to reach art aficionados and invited reporters to the event.

Results: The event raised more than $400,000 in free legal services for children and the disadvantaged. The 300 event attendees included reporters, art lovers and promininent members of the Los Angeles legal and art community.

We received photo and story coverage in several publications, including The Los Angeles Daily Journal and the Santa Monica Daily Press and multiple listings in community calendars.

Larry Russ, Steve Nissen and Artist Guillermo Bert pose in front of his work “The Price of Justice”

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