Goldfish by Rachel Hulin

Galleries, artists and designers have been coming together to help support disaster relief efforts in Haiti and we wanted to share those resources with you:

Rafael Soldi of Bonni Benrubi Gallery dropped us a note over the weekend about the Haiti Relief Benefit Print Sale he has swiftly put together. Emerging photographers, including Spring 2005 Hot Shot and 20x200 Edition-Maker Rachel Hulin and Winter 2007 Hot Shot Molly Landreth have donated prints which will be sold for $50, with all proceeds going to Yele Haiti, the grassroots organization established by Wyclef Jean to bring global awareness to the country. The selection of prints is currently available for viewing online.

He wrote:

We don't have a lot of money but our talent and creativity we got for free, and together we can raise up to $8,000" writes Rafael. This is a great way to collect art, support emerging photographers, and help Haiti in one fell swoop, so we hope you'll consider it.

A few other artists and designers giving a portion of their proceeds to Haiti:
+ Gallery Hanahou: 20% off sales from the upcoming 20/10 Vision show will be donated to support Haiti.
+ Illustrator Claudia Pearson will donate 25% of sales from her two new valentine prints to Yele Haiti.
+ Textile designer company Proud Mary will donate 50% off each online sale to the Red Cross through the end of the day today.
+ Wonder Wonder Designs will donate 30% of all sales from January 15th - 24th to Doctors Without Borders.

Here are also few really good photographic sources of information reflecting on photographers' experiences in Haiti and ongoing events: interview with Damon Winter in The New York Times, photoessay by Jeff Antebi on NPR, and an update from Doctors Without Borders on Boing Boing.

A side note about text donations:
A few days ago I frantically texted in a small donation to Haiti through Red Cross and Yele, the two organizations employing this viral new form of philanthropy. Since then there has been some confusion about which organizations will use donations most effectively. Yesterday, blogger Felix Salmon posted an entry worth reading encouraging donors to think twice about how and where they are donating.

Subports, a text-to-buy company which pairs with independent designers and businesses, also brought to light that many of the donations made via text messages that are automatically billed to your cell phone will not be delivered until that bill is paid. In some cases, this could take several months. Subports' text donations (the text codes for donations ranging from $10 - $150 are listed here) are billed directly to your credit card, so the donation reaches Doctors Without Borders with greater expediency.

Whatever form of donation you choose: purchasing art, texting-in, or buying goods from one of the designers above, make sure to research how the company or organization plans to direct donations to Haiti so the aid provided can be used most effectively.