W+K Amsterdam Wants You to Give a F*ck About Charity This Christmas

A word with a bad rep is being transformed into a force of good this festive season, as Wieden+Kennedy Amsterdam encourages people to purchase limited-edition artworks to raise money for the refugee crisis. 

By harnessing the power that a single four-letter word has to offend, excite and provoke, the agency today launches – Give A Fuck, a charitable platform that encourages people to take action and which connects the creative community with social causes. Click here to browse the platform.

To launch the initiative W+K Amsterdam has partnered with over 60 talented artists from all over the world, asking each to create and donate artworks that represent or feature ‘a f*ck’. The result is more than 100 one-off or limited-edition artworks from varying mediums, which are being sold in aid of Proactiva Open Arms – the lifeguards at the frontline of the refugee crisis. 

For sale at letsgiveafuck.org, all the artworks have been specifically created for this project and include oil paintings, sketches, photography, prints, sculptures and craft objects. The artists, who fully donated their efforts and artworks, come from all over the world and include renowned New York documentary filmmaker and street photographer Cheryl Dunn, Amsterdam-based cartoon boomer Troqman, London-based photographer Sophie Ebrard and Spanish illustrator Jorge Lawerta. 

Blake Harrop, Wieden+Kennedy Amsterdam Managing Director, says:  “As creative people, it’s easy to feel powerless in the face of human tragedy. We wanted to find a way to enable people in the creative community to have a positive impact on social causes, so we decided instead of the usual ad agency Christmas card we’d spend our energy on launching this platform instead. We’ve been overwhelmed by the generosity and support the idea has received from artists around the world.”

All proceeds raised from the sale of the art will be donated to Proactiva Open Arms, a charity from Barcelona, Spain, who are dedicated to saving lives at sea. Having moved their operations to Greece in early September to help refugees safely reach the Greek coast, Proactiva Open Arms’ teams currently cover 17 km of coastline in Lesvos and Chios by land and sea, and ensure approximately 20 boats per day land safely.

Anyone around the globe wanting to participate this holiday season can buy art now at: letsgiveafuck.org. The webshop will be open until December 23rd or until sold out. 

Turns out 'f*ck' isn't such a bad word after all.