6:00–8:00 p.m.
The Steelcase Showroom, 4 Columbus Circle, NYC
New York City’s outdoor community cats are getting extra special help this winter from some talented and compassionate NYC architects. The second annual Architects for Animals project, Giving Shelter, to aid New York City’s homeless, stray, and outdoor cats, is already underway, and will culminate with a one-night fundraising exhibition of designer winter cat shelters. The event — slated for Tuesday, December 6, from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. at The Steelcase Showroom, 4 Columbus Circle — will benefit the New York City Feral Cat Initiative, a program of the Mayor’s Alliance for NYC’s Animals®.
Last year, New York City’s architectural community joined the growing number of New Yorkers who care about the city’s tens of thousands of feral and homeless cats. Architects for Animals founder and rescuer, Leslie Farrell, spearheaded a competition among architectural design firms to create the most inspired winter shelters imaginable. Designers from some of New York’s top design firms, including Farrell’s employer, The Switzer Group; Cannon Design; Davis Brody Bond Aedas; Mauricio Lopez; Ryal Porter Sheridan; Zimmerman Workshop; and others created a breathtaking assortment of outdoor winter shelters to help keep some of the city’s outdoor cats warm during the frigid winter months. The undertaking helped to create new awareness about the plight of New York City’s feral and free-roaming cats.
For this year’s Giving Shelter, Architects for Animals has enlisted more impressive talents within the architectural community to create a new collection of designer winter shelters. The creations will be on display for the public at the December 6 fundraising reception, and then will be donated to the New York City Feral Cat Initiative to be used by local colony caretakers. This year’s teams include world renowned architects and designers from FXFowle; Gage Clemenceau; H3; RMJM; Leslie Farrell; Team Anemoi, a group of talented designers that includes Christina Ciardullo, Wanlika Kaewkamchand, Hiroko Nakatani, and Kate Kulpa; and a joint venture between Co Adaptive Architecture and The American Street Cat.
“The architectural community has been wonderful” says Farrell. “For the second straight year, the participating design firms are enthusiastically embracing this important cause and supporting the efforts of the New York City Feral Cat Initiative.”
Tickets to the exhibition/fundraiser will be available at the door for a suggested donation of $20 for the general public and $10 for colony caretakers with proof of Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) certification. Cash, check, and credit cards will be accepted. Proceeds will be donated to the New York City Feral Cat Initiative of the Mayor’s Alliance. RSVP for the event now!
The New York City Feral Cat Initiative (NYCFCI) is a program of the Mayor’s Alliance for NYC’s Animals that works to humanely reduce the number of outdoor community cats in NYC and improve the plight of those cats currently living outdoors through the humane, non-lethal method of Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR). Towards this end, the NYCFCI provides hands-on assistance at TNR projects in all boroughs for individuals who have completed a TNR training workshop; loans of humane traps for TNR; food and straw giveaways for colony caretakers; advice to the public and caretakers by phone and e-mail; educational events; community meetings; and information via our website, e-newsletter, and printed materials.