Farmington Artist Auctions Painting to Benefit Hands On Hartford

With the COVID-19 crisis escalating demand for the services and basic necessities Hands On Hartford provides, long-time supporter Kate Emery, a Farmington-based fine art oil painter, will auction her original piece, Distant Warmth, to benefit the nonprofit’s efforts. Bids will be accepted online at KateEmery.com/auctions through midnight on April 30, 2020.

The 28x22-inch painting is a music-inspired abstract completed in 2020. Its shades of warm earth, dove gray, spun cloud and gold are particularly suited to contemporary home and office décor. Interested bidders may see the painting on the artist’s KateEmery.com website.

A second-career artist who works full-time from her studio in Farmington, Emery partners with charitable organizations so that each of her works sold benefits a community cause. “During these challenging times, it seems even more important for my work to have a positive impact on people in need,” says the entrepreneur and founder of The Walker Group, a Farmington-based professional technology services social enterprise, and reSET, a Hartford-based non-profit that seeks to advance the social enterprise sector in the state.

Emery will donate 75 percent of the price realized for the painting, valued at $925, to Hands On Hartford, a social service nonprofit that provides food, housing and health services for Hartford’s most economically challenged residents. Founded in 1969 as Center City Churches, the organization has quickly adapted to the COVID-19 situation to continue operating its MANNA Community Pantry, Community Meals Program and other neighborhood services.