The Big Draw, an annual event that gets thousands of people, young and old, to pick up a pencil, pen or paintbrush, has high hopes for a charity's auction starting next week. Hosted by Christie's, a live auction of works by leading artists will be held in London on 10 March, followed by an online auction (10–24 March). The artists who have donated works in aid of the good cause include David Hockney, who is a patron of the international event that bills itself as the world's largest festival of drawing. Fellow artists such as Antony Gormley, Peter Blake, Yinka Shonibare, Maggi Hambling and the political journalist Andrew Marr have also donated works. Bridget Riley, whose artist foundation already helps art students across England study at first hand drawings by Old Masters in the British Museum's vast collection, is also backing the Big Draw. “Drawing is an exercise in looking: one finds out what can be seen and at the same time one finds oneself having to organise the visual and emotional information extracted,” Riley says. Founded in 2000 in the UK, the big event, which takes place in museums and galleries and many other venues each autumn, was inspired by the great Victorian art critic and campaigner, John Ruskin. In true Ruskinian spirit, The Big Draw promotes the ideal that through drawing we engage more fully with the world around us and show it greater respect, hence the auction’s title It’s Our World. For more information visit www.christies.com/itsourworld
