Programs
Faou Foundation promotes awareness of our planet’s natural treasures through community-based educational programming in conjunction with each of its public art installations. These programs are designed to support each Mariko Mori installation, increase the accessibility of the artwork to the public, enhance its educational value, and provide a forum for exploring the dialogue between art and nature. Faou utilizes art as a means to engage local communities in celebrating and conserving natural resources.
COLLABORATORS
Faou is committed to local partners to serve its mission and global audience, and the foundation’s partnerships have made invaluable connections and contributions.
Gaia Art Association is a non-profit organization on Miyako Island, Okinawa, founded by former Mayor Toshihiko Shimoji. Primal Rhythm: Sun Pillar, gifted to Gaia from Faou in 2011, serves as the primary focus of Gaia’s mission to highlight contemporary art and education with the cultural revitalization of Miyako Island. Faou and Gaia have worked hand-in-hand to organize and sponsor on-going Benesse Art Site field trips for high school students to foster their exposure to global art and encourage new ways to engage with their local community.
INEA (Instituto Estadual do Ambiente) protects, conserves, and recovers the environmental heritage of the State of Rio de Janeiro in order to promote sustainability and play a strategic role in the development of the state. Faou Foundation gifted Ring: One with Nature to INEA in 2016, where the work is open to the public and remains on permanent display in Cunhambebe State Park. Faou and INEA continue to promote engagement activities like tree planting and children’s educational programs.
Ser Cidadão serves as an educational opportunity for kids and young adults from the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro to immerse themselves in art and culture. They offer a participatory, dynamic environment, with programs that encourage essential life skills such as critical thinking, collaboration, and creativity. Projecto TRAMA is dedicated to strengthening connections between public school students and the environment. Since 2022, SerCidadão has taken field trips to Ring: One with Nature to explore links between human beings and nature.