April 4th to 6th, 2025
Arrrt Achoo Culture:
Interpreting the Meaning of Life Through Color
From April 4th to 6th, Arrrt Achoo Culture hosted a special market event centered on "Life" at Mougins Farm, Nanjing. Infused with Viva la Vida’s "Long Live Life" philosophy, it invited participants to express their understanding of life through art—encouraging emotional release and authentic self-expression.
Brand Introduction: Let Art Be as Unstoppable as a Sneeze
Nanjing "ARRRT-CHOO" Culture Co., Ltd. is a pioneering community art education studio dedicated to fostering artistic inspiration in children, adults, and families. Guided by the belief that "Everyone is an artist," we champion the idea that "Love and art are like a powerful ‘sneeze’—highly contagious and impossible to hold back. So let it out! Just like painting, the most satisfying strokes come when you can’t resist the urge."
April 5, 2025
Emotions and Life:
Spring Painting Therapy Event
On April 5, VIVA partnered with Mood Psychology (WUSTL) to host a "Spring Painting Therapy Event" at Washington University in St. Louis. Amidst academic pressures, the event offered students a platform for emotional expression and self-discovery through art.
Mood Psychology (WUSTL)
Founded in March 2021 by WUSTL psychology undergraduates, Mood Psychology (WUSTL) is an independent student group aligned with the mission of Mood Psychology. The group fosters an inclusive, confidential space for mental health support through workshops, expert lectures, and free counseling referrals. Activities like escape rooms and "tree hole" letter exchanges further build a supportive community.
March 30, 2025
“Draw Your Life” Public Art Campaign
On March 30, VIVA and Qingwei Youth Space co-hosted the “Draw Your Life” public art campaign along Zhongshan Road, Qingdao. Celebrating Qingwei's 10th anniversary, the event aimed to document urban narratives, foster cross-cultural resonance, and showcase the city’s blend of maritime heritage and youthful vitality.
Qingwei Youth Space
Established in Qingdao on March 27, 2015, Qingwei Youth Space operates under the ethos “Embrace the Unknown, Live Out Ideals.” Over a decade, it has united creative youth through literary salons, film projects, music, and urban explorations, transforming ideals into tangible cultural initiatives.
A Canvas of New York
— VIVA Urban Observation by NYU Students in Washington Square Park
February, 2025
In 2024, three NYU students—Samantha, Jojo, and Cassie—organized a VIVA Urban Observation in Washington Square Park, New York. They laid out a picnic blanket and art supplies, inviting strangers to illustrate what life meant to them, and by the end of the day had collected over 50 portraits from street performers, professors, children, and unhoused individuals.
A political science and geography professor painted his vision for more inclusive cities and discussed it deeply with Samantha, sparking mutual inspiration. The experience taught Jojo and Samantha to listen without assumptions, seeing that everyone carries a unique, unfinished poem of their own.
January, 2025
VIVA × Glow & Grow Women’s Hub Workshop
In January 2025, in Seattle, USA, VIVA joined hands with the women’s nonprofit Glow & Grow Women’s Hub to host the “Flower of Life” workshop. Against the backdrop of global sustainable development, gender equality (SDG 5), and quality education (SDG 4), this event gathered women from diverse backgrounds to explore personal growth and empowerment.
The workshop combined warm tea sharing, painting, and storytelling. Participants broke the ice by sharing favorite foods tied to memories, then painted portraits of each other, answering questions like “How do you see me?” Finally, they expressed personal growth stories on canvas, transforming pain into light. This event celebrated women’s resilience and created a shared space for healing and new beginnings.
January, 2025
VIVA Cross-border Collaboration
In 2024, VIVA broadened its partnerships with diverse brands and organizations, weaving art and life education into fields like mental health, sustainable development, and climate protection. Through these collaborations, VIVA inspired participants to explore themselves, society, and the future, turning art into a catalyst for both inner healing and broader social reflection.
Early in the year, VIVA teamed up with Beichen Youth’s “Interesting Human Conference,” taking its “Draw Life Global Art Exhibition” from Guangzhou to Nanjing. Over 3,000 young people stopped by to create personal life portraits, channeling their thoughts and anxieties into vibrant artworks that revealed their unique voices and inner strength. From September to October in Guangzhou’s Baiyun District, VIVA joined the Liuwan (Stroll) Life Festival at Rongsheng Shanshui Cube. The event drew over 2,000 young participants and collected nearly 100 life portraits, each capturing individual reflections on existence. Finally, on December 14, in collaboration with Green Greek, VIVA hosted a biodiversity and climate puzzle workshop. Participants explored solutions to climate change and then expressed their visions for sustainability through life portraits, sparking meaningful dialogue on climate action and biodiversity conservation.
Finding Life Through Play
— VIVA at the Liuwan Life Festival
in Guangzhou
Autumn, 2024
In autumn 2024, VIVA brought its Global Life Portrait Exhibition to the Liuwan (Stroll) Life Festival in Guangzhou, China, hosting a creative market that explored “play” and life’s meanings through art. The event featured vibrant works by children and teens, drew over 2,000 young people, and collected nearly 100 portraits, sparking deep cross-generational conversations.
A volunteer shared how meeting a young man who had cycled alone across many places before settling again in Nanjing gave him the courage to embrace choices and face life’s risks. Looking ahead, VIVA plans to partner with more local markets to keep connecting people through the power of art.
Traces of Life During the Holidays
— VIVA’ s Special Workshop at Baiyun Aquatics in Guangzhou
Autumn, 2024
In autumn 2024, VIVA hosted a special workshop at Guangzhou Baiyun Rongsheng Aquatics Center as part of its global tour, inviting people to express personal stories through portrait painting. Held during China’s National Day and Mid-Autumn holidays, the event quickly drew over 2,000 participants—called “strolling youths”—who explored their life narratives in a festive, joyful setting.
Within just a few days, VIVA gathered nearly 100 portraits, turning a typical holiday celebration into a heartfelt space where people captured the energy and stories of their lives in color and lines.
April 18, 2024
VIVA Experiment in Chifeng
On April 18, 2024, in Chifeng, China, VIVA experimenter Li Jiaxin worked with first-year students at Zhaowuda Middle School on the theme “Colors and Emotions in Life.” The event opened with Jiaxin introducing VIVA’s mission and sharing the founder Xiaoning’s inspiring story from Frida Kahlo’s home in Mexico, sparking students’ anticipation.
Students engaged in a “Color Story Sharing” icebreaker, telling personal stories tied to chosen colors. They then created “Portraits of Life,” using painting to express relationships, moments, and emotions. In small groups, they shared these stories, turning individual reflections into a collective emotional journey that explored life’s meaning and inner worlds.