essie and the Foundation for Art & Healing's Project UnLonely Partner Together to Combat Loneliness

NEW YORK, March 23, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- essie, the leading nail polish brand known for creating joy through color, is proud to announce its philanthropic partnership in the U.S. with The Foundation for Art & Healing (FAH) and Project UnLonely. This partnership will launch as a part of Hands All In, a holistic global initiative to support essie conscious brand values, starting with a commitment to its community. As a color-driven brand deeply rooted in celebrating creativity and fostering happiness, essie is dedicated to helping its community develop meaningful connections through color. 

There is an epidemic of loneliness around the world, with 61% of Gen Z admitting they feel lonely and 46% of Gen Z reporting that their loneliness grew since the pandemic. essie aims to identify impactful methods to help diminish the effects of loneliness on the Gen Z community and has partnered with FAH to promote creative expression as an innovative approach to alleviate loneliness.

"At essie, we're obsessed with color and its power to bring people together through storytelling," said Isabelle Carramaschi, Vice President of essie. "We've never been more connected by technology, but an overwhelming amount of people are simultaneously struggling with a level of disconnection never seen before. As a brand that drives personal connections and has a large community of Gen Z cohorts, essie feels a responsibility to help create a positive change. Hands All In aims to create colorful connections to uplift those who feel lonely."

Through Project UnLonely, which broadens public awareness for the negative physical and mental health consequences of loneliness, FAH works to explore creative arts-based approaches to address the impact of loneliness. FAH developed an evidence-informed workshop through Project UnLonely called Colors & Connection to connect students and college communities through the use of color and art-making, and story-sharing.  In partnership with essie, Colors & Connection has been implemented on college campuses across the country, including Harvard University, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and Emerson College. The one-hour workshops are held in-person in group settings, and are rooted in color's proven power of facilitating personal reflection, imagination, self-expression, and connection. They feature guided "connecting through colors" activities and thought-provoking exercises that stimulate rich conversations and authentic engagement with oneself and others in a comfortable and supportive environment. essie and Project UnLonely will continue to roll out additional Colors & Connection programs throughout college campuses in the U.S. in 2022.

"FAH launched Project UnLonely in 2016 well before the rise of loneliness was becoming a global concern, and its urgency now cannot be overstated," explained Jeremy Nobel, MD, MPH, Harvard Medical School faculty member and Founder and President of the Foundation for Art & Healing. "Through our programs we're continuing to see the power of creative expression and the arts having remarkable impact, improving connection and fostering a sense of belonging.  We're excited to partner with essie to bring these novel approaches to college students navigating the social and emotional challenges of the campus experience."

In celebration of the new partnership, the brand is building a skate park in Los Angeles on March 23 and 24 at the Annenberg Community Beach House in Santa Monica and installing a colorful and interactive community art mural. Through the skate organization Grlswirl, the brand will be inviting the local skating community to come together and share in a creative and colorful transformation together. Through these events, essie aims to reach a wider community and bring more visibility to loneliness and their Hands All In cause mission.

Visit www.essie.com/colors-and-connections to learn more about how essie and Project UnLonely are creating a positive impact, and how your college campus can get involved with the Colors and Connection program this year.

ABOUT essie^®

America's nail salon expert since 1981, essie aims to inspire a love for the manicure experience with a wit and style that touches the hearts of people everywhere. essie is the go-to nail brand for beauty professionals, industry insiders, celebrities and fashion icons around the world. the brand offers a portfolio of nail products and diverse palette of colors that includes: essie^®original, a vast range of iconic and on-trend nuanced colors, gel couture™, 2-step longwear system, TREAT LOVE & COLOR™ advanced color and strength, and new expressie, quick dry on-the-fly polish. essie is beloved for its salon-quality formulas, witty shade names and over 1,000 colors. whether in salon, at home, on the runway or red carpet, essie believes in bringing people together through color; something powerful, collectible, personal and so much fun! since its introduction by Essie Weingarten, essie has delighted the color-obsessed with a love shared all over the world.

ABOUT The Foundation for Art & Healing

The Foundation for Art & Healing (FAH) is a nonprofit, mission-driven organization that uses creative expression and the arts to address some of the most urgent public health issues today.  Rooted in medicine and science, FAH develops high impact, scalable programs that address the physical and mental health challenges of diverse populations including front-line healthcare workers, older adults, caregivers, those with major illness, employees, and college students. Its national, regional, and community-based partnerships enable effective and equitable program delivery, amplifying the powerful effect of using creativity and the arts to connect and heal. FAH created Project UnLonely to focus public awareness on the negative physical and mental health consequences of loneliness, and to develop and broaden the use of effective arts-based programming. The Colors & Connection workshop was developed to engage the college community in combating loneliness on campus. www.artandhealing.org

For more information on FAH and Project UnLonely, please contact: [email protected]

For more information, please contact:
ALISON BROD MARKETING + COMMUNICATIONS
[email protected]

SOURCE essie