Out Impact's AIDS Awareness 2007

Special Artistic Project: The Bear Necessity Aids Project (BNAP)

Q Boy With AIDS Bear

Formed: The Bear Necessity Aids Project (BNAP) started on July 20th 2006, when British Gay Rapper Qboy accepted a small furry gift from New York City based artist Adrian L. Acosta (a.k.a. Amnesia Sparkles).

The gift was a small stuffed animal, a white bear, wearing a tiny white T-Shirt with a design geared to bring HIV/AIDS awareness. The T-shirt displays a blue shirtless male figure with a red ribbon floating in front of his torso. The blue man's arms and lower torso fade into numerous wavy red and blue lines resembling veins. On one side of the figure the word "STOP," on the opposite side the word "AIDS" are displayed. The design was altered from an original art piece entitled "THE BLUEST RIBBON" by Adrian L. Acosta.

The instructions given with the bear were simple.

1) Sign the bear's T-shirt
2) Take custody of the bear
3) Give bear to another artist on an unspecified future date
4) Have the next artist sign and take custody of the bear
5) Continue the chain.

True to karma, somehow the bear will one day return to New York City.

Mission: The goal of the project is to have the bear come back to New York City after having been passed around the world by many artist, musicians, and performers.

Once the AIDS Bear makes his triumphant return he will be donated to an organization that is geared towards the fight against HIV/AIDS. The AIDS Bear, with the autographed T-shirt, will then be auctioned and the funds will go towards helping individuals living with HIV/AIDS receive the bare necessities so they too can have happy and productive lives.

Inspired By: A friend of his who tested HIV+ at only 23.

Where Has The Bear Traveled?: "As an artist I often feel powerless, helpless, not knowing how and which way is the best way to bring awareness. The AIDS Bear is my humble attempt to do some good."

"My understanding is that the Bear, which started in New York, made its way to England, then Germany where it was last spotted. You can find details in the following link: http://www.adrianacosta.com/."

"This is a very organic project, one that is beyond my control," says Acosta. "It is up to those who get the bear to pass it on. It is my strong belief that the bear will somehow return to me in New York in the future where I plan to donate it to a non-profit organization geared to help those living with HIV/AIDS. Hopefully with its return people will see that folks really care about the fight against AIDS and they are willing to help...simply by the fact that they were parents to this orphan little bear. If we can care for a little stuffed animal we should be able to care for our brothers and sisters living with HIV/AIDS."




	Special Artistic Project: The Bear Necessity Aids Project (BNAP) Formed: The Bear Necessity Aids Project (BNAP) started on July 20th 2006, when British Gay Rapper Qboy accepted a small furry gift from New York City based artist Adrian L. Acosta (a.k.a. Amnesia Sparkles). The gift was a small stuffed animal, a white bear, wearing a tiny white T-Shirt with a design geared to bring HIV/AIDS awareness. The T-shirt displays a blue shirtless male figure with a red ribbon floating in front of his torso. The blue man's arms and lower torso fade into numerous wavy red and blue lines resembling veins. On one side of the figure the word "STOP," on the opposite side the word "AIDS" are displayed. The design was altered from an original art piece entitled "THE BLUEST RIBBON" by Adrian L. Acosta. The instructions given with the bear were simple. 1) Sign the bear's T-shirt 2) Take custody of the bear 3) Give bear to another artist on an unspecified future date 4) Have the next artist sign and take custody of the bear 5) Continue the chain. True to karma, somehow the bear will one day return to New York City. Mission: The goal of the project is to have the bear come back to New York City after having been passed around the world by many artist, musicians, and performers. Once the AIDS Bear makes his triumphant return he will be donated to an organization that is geared towards the fight against HIV/AIDS. The AIDS Bear, with the autographed T-shirt, will then be auctioned and the funds will go towards helping individuals living with HIV/AIDS receive the bare necessities so they too can have happy and productive lives. Inspired By: A friend of his who tested HIV+ at only 23. Where Has The Bear Traveled?: "As an artist I often feel powerless, helpless, not knowing how and which way is the best way to bring awareness. The AIDS Bear is my humble attempt to do some good." "My understanding is that the Bear, which started in New York, made its way to England, then Germany where it was last spotted. You can find details in the following link: http://www.adrianacosta.com/." "This is a very organic project, one that is beyond my control," says Acosta. "It is up to those who get the bear to pass it on. It is my strong belief that the bear will somehow return to me in New York in the future where I plan to donate it to a non-profit organization geared to help those living with HIV/AIDS. Hopefully with its return people will see that folks really care about the fight against AIDS and they are willing to help...simply by the fact that they were parents to this orphan little bear. If we can care for a little stuffed animal we should be able to care for our brothers and sisters living with HIV/AIDS."			Meet Dillon, our special friend affected by HIV Ashley Judd, Global Ambassador for YouthAIDS YouthAIDS Global Ambassador, Ashley Judd's Asia Diary * Every day, 14,000 people contract HIV * 40.3 million people now live with HIV * AIDS kills one child every minute Featured Performer Raising Awareness for AIDS: Annie Lennox The Concept Behind "Sing": More Videos Please purchase "Sing" by clicking here Annie's Call to Action: More Videos Please purchase "Sing" by clicking here

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