Herne Bay art collector Leslie Hill has put his Art for AIDS limited edition print by Andy Warhol collaborator Billy Apple up for sale on Trade Me to benefit a worthy local charity.
Hill is donating 50% of the proceeds of the online auction to HIV peer-support group Body Positive.
Bruce Kilmister from Body Positive says "Since the artwork is by a world-famous artist and is directly related to HIV and AIDS we are especially excited to be part of this auction fundraiser. Last year was a hard year financially for Body Positive, so I encourage everyone to bid, bid, bid."
The original Art for AIDS painting was produced by Billy Apple in 1993, and sold for $10,000 which was donated to the Bruce Burnett Memorial Fund for those infected and affected by HIV and AIDS. Then in 2000 Billy Apple created a limited edition of 50 screen prints of the painting on white acrylic to raise even more money.
Billy Apple's works are collected globally, and are held by some of the world's most prominent galleries including the Guggenheim and The Tate.
The auction is timed to lead up to the Big Gay Day in Beresford Square on Easter Sunday 4 April which is also a fundraiser for Body Positive.
"Our organisation does coal-face work but we are not government-funded so we would love other members of the GLBTT community to follow Mr Hill's fine example and call 0800 HIV LINE or visit our website to donate to Body Positive this Easter, so we can really get stuck in and help HIV+ New Zealander's this year," says Kilmister.
The Trade Me auction started yesterday with a reserve of $700.
