What to know
- International Art and Found Day on March 12 invites artists to hide free artwork around Toronto as part of a citywide scavenger hunt where anyone who finds a piece can keep it.
- The global initiative was started by Toronto contemporary artist Courtney Senior, who originally hid her own paintings around the city with notes encouraging people to take them home.
- This year, more than 1,200 artists from 24 countries are expected to participate, with an interactive map helping people track down hidden pieces across Toronto and beyond.
A scavenger hunt is allowing people to find art pieces they can keep for free if they find them around Toronto.
March 12 marks International Art and Found Day,which encourages local artists to share pieces of artwork by packaging them and hiding them somewhere in the city.
The scavenger hunt was started by Toronto contemporary artist Courtney Senior, who used to package her own art before she gained more success, leaving notes saying “Hello, I’m an original abstract painting in need of a loving home. FREE ART #ArtandFound.”
Senior then made the hunt global, calling on any and all artists to apply after she gained traction for her own art.
Now, thousands of artists are expected to participate in this year’s Art and Found, with over
1,221 artists signed up to hide their work, according to the website, which calls the event the biggest free art drop in the world.
To find out if any artists are participating in a location nearby, an interactive map was created for the event.
The scavenger hunt goes beyond Toronto, with artists from 24 countries around the world participating.
How to get involved as an artist
Any artist looking to share their own art through the scavenger hunt is asked to apply through the form on the Art and Found site.
They then must choose one or multiple pieces of work, which can be any medium, including musical albums, to wrap in paper, and label using the provided printable sign.
Artists should also include a note on the inside of the packaging, to share more about their piece and themself for whoever finds it.
The artist can then hide the art somewhere in a Toronto neighbourhood on March 12. Some location ideas include high traffic areas, like benches, TTC or GO stations, parks, condo lobbies, and stores.
For ease of searching, it’s advised to drop clues on social media on where the art may be hiding ahead of March 12.
Senior added that artists should post on their social media accounts with the hashtag #ArtandFound, while also tagging the event’s Instagram profile @artandfoundday.
