Shark Guardian and The Finarts

Who are The Finarts?

The Finarts is a social enterprise that combines art and conservation, aiming to create awareness surrounding the threats sharks face. Starting with a blank canvas, in this case the sculpture of a shark, artists from all over the world contribute their own designs and creative stories. With each hand-painted sculpture sold, The Finarts support shark conservation charities Shark Guardian and Sharkproject.

Their vision is to use different artistic backgrounds to provide a new outlook on shark conservation. They aim to bring people together through education and spreading awareness to create a community of shark conservationists, providing hope for future shark populations.

Where did the Shark Guardian and The Finarts collaboration begin?

Shark Guardian have many associated dive centres around the world which support the charity and shark conservation efforts through educational dives, presentations, and workshops provided by trained staff. One of these wonderful dive centres is Sea Bees Diving based in Phuket Thailand.

Alex Loew, the resident artist and a dive instructor at Sea Bees, created The Finarts initiative alongside dive centre owner Holger back in 2017 after they became aware of a similar concept protecting elephants. Shark Guardian partnered with The Finarts shortly after this and have had the pleasure of witnessing some incredible pieces of art throughout this time.

“We believe passionately in the influence art can have in being a vessel of education and mindfulness regarding the rising dangers of longline fishing and marine pollution.”

- The Finarts

The team go further than helping the marine environment through inspiring artworks. They also donate profits to our conservation efforts and Shark Guardian is one of the proud benefactors of these funds. Shark Guardian partnered with The Finarts ADEX in 2018 where directors Liz and Brendon were exhibitors and special guest speakers - presenting to thousands of people from all over the world. The Finarts have also supported screenings of the always emotive and moving SharkWater Extinction documentary. Recently The Finarts have sponsored our educational work by donating funds specifically for the development of educational materials for Thai schools, translator costs and the printing of Sharks: Our Ocean Guardians (our first children books). These books are donated to schools as a resource for all future pupils.

Shark Guardian's 'Award for Outstanding Achievement in Shark Conservation’ is a trophy created by the wonderful team at The Finarts and as the title suggests are presented to conservationists of every kind that have had a significant impact on ocean and shark conservation.

Both their art and passion are things to admire and champion. If you’d like to support The Finarts you can either grab one of their many beautiful pieces here, or if your creativity has been sparked, you can get a kit to paint your very own shark here!

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