Art, Business and Philanthropy: an Interview with Art in Giving Founder, Eliane Markoff

April 19, 2011

Eliane Markoff, founder of the arts non-profit “Art in Giving,” recently took some time to answer a few questions via email for the New Vilna Review. In this interview she discusses what led to the creation of the organization, her own background in the arts and the deeply personal family connection to the important work she does as both an artist and a philanthropist.

NVR: For our readers who might not have heard of your new organization, “Art in Giving,” can you tell us a little about what it does and what inspired you to start it?

Art in Giving connects philanthropy with business and the fine arts www.artingiving.com. It is a recognition company that addresses a business need in a creative way. The business need is that organizations often look for new and meaningful ways to reward outstanding performance of individuals and teams, express appreciation to board members, clients, partners and honor guest speakers. Appreciation is typically shown with gifts such as pens, clocks or bowls.

Art in Giving offers organizations a meaningful alternative. It offers them the option to recognize individuals or teams with a piece of enduring fine art that reflects a core theme or a value in an organization’s mission. If the honorees are presented with a piece of art, they will always remember the honor and the organization that honored them. If they are presented with an Art in Giving Certificate, they will have the added benefit of enjoying a cultural experience before they select their piece of art.

An ancillary yet significant benefit to Art in Giving is that fifty percent of the proceeds sold through the efforts of Art in Giving are donated to pediatric cancer research in collaboration with a national scientific advisory board and the Rachel Molly Markoff Foundation www.rachelmollymarkofffoundation.org.

My vision in creating Art in Giving is to convince organizations of the value of using fine works of art offered by Art in Giving to recognize individuals who may be clients, employees, board members, volunteers or donors. In addition, my hope is that individuals will consider Art in Giving to celebrate their life cycle events such as wedding, religious celebrations and holiday gifts. Art in Giving started with a painting my daughter Rachel created. She was 8 years old and she drew it at the Jimmy Fund Clinic at Dana Farber while patiently waiting for her many doctors’ appointments.

A few years after she passed away, my husband and I established The Rachel Molly Markoff Foundation. Its mission is to raise funds for pediatric cancer research and other initiatives to help families cope with childhood cancer. As we looked for a logo for the Foundation, I redrew and painted Rachel’s drawings, three flowers on a sunny day. Painting Rachel’s flowers was painful yet therapeutic at the same time.

As I continued to paint, I was encouraged to show my work at various venues such as the Wellesley Public Library and at Quebrada, a local bakery in Wellesley. Eventually, I moved my studio from my home to the South End Art District of SOWA at 450 Harrison Avenue in Boston. For many years, only the proceeds from my work funded our Foundation. Then an idea evolved as I got to know many of the fine artists in the building. Several of them expressed interest in my concept of connecting art with philanthropy. I then engaged several artists around Art in Giving LLC. The artists have generously agreed to donate 50% of the proceeds of their art sold through the efforts of Art in Giving.

NVR: What makes Art in Giving different from other arts non-profits in the Boston area?

Art in Giving is an LLC whose sole member is a 501(c)(3) private foundation. It combines business recognition with philanthropy and the fine arts. Art in Giving targets company budgets earmarked for client relations and employee recognition, as well as for building renovation. Art in Giving offers a creative alternative to raising money for a not for profit without the need to appeal to a company’s philanthropic budget.

NVR: On the organization’s website it says that half the proceeds from each piece of art sold will go to benefit the Rachel Molly Markoff Foundation, a non-profit which helps fund pediatric cancer research – can you tell us a little about this foundation and the work it does?

The Rachel Molly Markoff Foundation funds research to help find a cure for cancer, especially brain tumors as well as other related cancers such as leukemia. The Foundation was established in 1999 and has funded 9 researchers to date in collaboration mainly with The Scientific Advisory Board of The Brain Tumor Society. The most recent two grants were awarded to Dr. James Waschekat at UCLA and to Dr. Todd Golub at the Broad Institute.

Dr. Waschekat utilizes genetically engineered mice to study the role of STAT3 in medulloblastoma immune evasion. Model systems are created to mimic the molecular, cellular and biological characteristics of human tumors in order to better understand the tumor biology and test therapies.

Dr. Golub’s lab was able to accelerate its ability to profile the activity of cancer causing proteins and tyrosine kinase in tumor cells and to extend the profiling to new and other types of proteins. This was made possible through the Foundations’ grant.

In addition, the Foundation funds support programs to help families cope with childhood cancer. One of the support areas I am most passionate about is funding children who are undergoing cancer treatment to attend summer camps dedicated to children with cancer. Our daughter Rachel never had that chance. To learn more about our foundation and its programs, I invite you to link to www.rachelmollymarkofffoundation.org

NVR: Can you tell us a little about some of the Jewish artists who are associated with Art in Giving?

Stephen Silver-oil painter -abstract

Debby Krim-photographer

Judith Solomon- oil painter-realist

Eliane Markoff- watercolor, oils and glass-impressionist

One of the Jewish artists is Steve Silver. In addition to being one of the Art in Giving artists, he is also an Advisory Board Member for Art in Giving.

Stephen Silver is a contemporary oil painter who specializes in abstract landscapes. Through his artwork, he transforms the environment into abstract images. Some are more recognizable, and some less so, but they’re always expressions of his inner emotions. Steve interprets nature to create imagery that evokes his emotional attachment to his surroundings. His goal is to freely use color and shape to create paintings that are esthetically pleasing and interesting while still conveying nature and a sense of place.  The place may be interpreted differently by different viewers, but that just adds to the mystery of the painting.

Steve, a native of New York, graduated from Carnegie Mellon University. He has studied at the Museum of Fine Arts School in Boston and has been a student of master artist Tom Ouellette. Steve’s work can be seen in galleries, has been in numerous shows and is in many private collections. It can also be viewed at his studio, located at 450 Harrison Ave. in SOWA, a major artist’s community in Boston. Steve is the founder of the SOWA Artists Guild, an association of approximately 50 studio artists.

Please check www.artingiving.com to read about the artists. Many of them belong to the Copley Society and have been featured in local and international publications

NVR: How would you like to see the organization grow in the coming years? Are there particular goals that you have for it?

Art in Giving continues to reach out to corporations to engage them in considering Art in Giving for their recognition strategy for clients, executives and other employees, board members, guest speakers and more. Our goal is to secure clients similar to Danversbank and Gibson Sotheby International. Danversbank partnered with Art in Giving by purchasing a gift certificate for every board member. Gibson-Sotheby has begun to offer gift certificates to clients and new home buyers.

One specific goal is to reach 100 certificates by year end 2011. The value of the certificates can range from $100 to over $10,000.

Another goal is to hire an Executive Director and find a sponsor who would be willing to share the first year’s salary.

NVR: Can you tell us a little about your own background in the arts?

I began my studies in art in 1998 by taking classes at museums and adult education programs. As I visited galleries and art exhibits, I approached individual artists for private lessons. I was fortunate to have had a successful first exhibit where most of my paintings sold during the opening reception.

My work is displayed in many private homes and in several buildings in the Boston area including Equity Office, the main reception area at Joslin Diabetes Center, Wellesley Bank, Harvard Medical School, Sherin and Lodgen LLC, Children’s Hospital - Boston, Boston Private Bank & Trust, and The Vernon Center.

One of the highlights of my career in the arts is to be part of a permanent collection in a gallery in Paris, France www.galerie-des-impressionnistes.com

NVR: Is there anything else you would like to add?

We all have choices that we make in life but we cannot choose the life itself.

My background in the arts and in philanthropy has evolved as a result of my life experiences. My initial background was in the corporate world.  I worked in R & D for a high tech company for 19 years, had my own consulting firm where I mediated business cases and taught as Adjunct Professor in a business school.  Art in Giving combines three of my passions: business, philanthropy and the fine arts in a very personal and meaningful way.

Copyright The New Vilna Review 2011. This interview has been condensed for formatting.