Biography

Hilary Wallis, the founder and Executive Director of Artfully AWARE, views the power of the arts as a means by which to visually educate the public and generate awareness of societal issues focused around community development and social activism.

Upon receiving a Bachelor of Science Degree in Telecommunications from the University of Florida in 2001, Hilary promptly relocated oversees to immerse herself in the European art world. Combining her journalistic background with her skill as a painter and photographer, Hilary has proved herself to be a powerful storyteller of both hardship and hope.

The culmination of her experiences traveling in nearly sixty countries, she created the Empowerment Through Art program in Uganda in 2005, with the goal of providing artistic services to members of vulnerable communities as a means of education, psycho-social care, disseminating vital public health information and enriching social and emotional development. By engaging these communities, Empowerment Through Art promoted awareness and inspired advocacy by allowing community members to share their stories with others. Organizing a touring exhibition of Ugandan artwork in the United States and Europe, Hilary also authored the system's program manual, educational materials for U.S. schools and produced a documentary telling the Empowerment Through Art story.

A veteran of both solo and group exhibitions with her own work throughout the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium, Hilary has worked as a consultant for such organizations as Plan, CARE, the International Rescue Committee, Americans for Informed Democracy, InterAction, the Global Campaign for Education, the National Conference for Community and Justice, the Student Movement for Real Change and the South Africa-based Buffelshoek Trust. She has also served as a photographer for the Inter-Press Service in Ethiopia and assisted in creating and developing Sarasota's Arts and Culture Magazine in Florida. Hilary's proudest achievement is the creation of Artfully AWARE (AfA), a global nonprofit organization, established in the United Kingdom and the United States, comprised of individuals united by their passion for international arts education and community development. AfA provides services to NGO's, humanitarian agencies, arts organizations and educational institutions around the world.