Eight ways to give it this spring

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Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.

Tracey Emin, Grayson Perry and Anish Kapoor unite to end HIV 

More than 70 contemporary artworks – a painting by Tracey Emin and a Grayson Perry ceramic tile among them – are on offer at the Terrence Higgins Trust’s annual fundraising auction this month. Over the past two decades the auction has raised more than £5mn to help meet its goal of ending new HIV cases by 2030. A bespoke suit from Advani London Bombay and a two-night stay at Marrakech’s Riad Mena hotel are also up for auction, with all proceeds benefitting the charity. Alongside the auction – online and at Christie’s London –  a limited-edition run of bright, geometric screenprints (£850 each, unframed) by Rana Begum is being sold to support the cause.

Artisanal tableware supporting refugee stonemasons

Heritage NGO the World Monuments Fund has been training Syrian refugees in traditional stonemasonry since 2017, equipping them with profitable skills and restoring heritage in the region. Now that the stonemasons are ready to go into business, they have worked with artisanal homeware brand Ishkar to release their first product: a set of spice bowls and candle holders made from basalt and limestone (£260). The modular sets can be purchased at Ishkar to support the refugees’ fledgling enterprises.

Star-studded portraits in aid of mental health support

Oasis, David Bowie and Grace Jones all feature in Lawrence Watson’s new print collection for Print Matters. The acclaimed music photographer has gathered his career-defining portraits to fundraise for Rethink Mental Illness, which supports those with conditions such as schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. The charity will receive 20 per cent of sale price from the signed, limited-edition prints (from £575), and a poster (£85) featuring Watson’s longtime collaborator Liam Gallagher.

A Secret Ceramics sale to fund community pottery studios 

Last year, the inaugural Secret Ceramics exhibition at London Craft Week funded the construction of FiredUp4’s fourth youth pottery studio in London. Now the sale will be reprised at Christie’s, aiming to cover the upkeep of the sites. More than 100 works by Hitomi Hosono, Christabel MacGreevy and more will be sold for £500 each, all of which goes to FiredUp4. The makers’ identities will only be revealed when the sale is complete.

Lucky charm bracelets grant children wishes

Jeweller Carolina Bucci has revisited her first design, the Lucky bracelet, to raise funds for children’s charity Make-A-Wish UK. The organisation fulfils the “wishes” of children with critical illnesses, three of whom visited Bucci’s studio in January to add their own touches to the sterling-silver bracelets using charms and colours. These designs (£195) are now being sold until the end of this year, with £100 from each sale helping to grant more wishes.

A toastie tournament to fight food insecurity 

Canary Wharf’s Marceline brasserie will next week inaugurate an unusual competition. Leading London chefs – among them Ana Da Costa of Macanese supper club Fat Tea and Gunpowder executive chef Nirmal Save – will compete with Marceline’s head chef Davide Toro to create the perfect croque monsieur. Attendees will receive three drinks and a sample of each croque, with £5 from every £30 ticket going to London charity The Felix Project, which redirects surplus food to homeless shelters, food banks and primary schools. The winning sandwich will join Marceline’s menu in April.

The Wildlife Trusts auctions drawings of its nature reserves 

Over the past year, biro artist Cy Baker has visited 50 nature reserves across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. His sketches and original artworks of the local flora and fauna feature puffins, Manx shearwaters and gnarled branches at Northumberland’s new Rothbury Estate reserve. Next month, the works will be sold in a charity auction at London’s Camley Street Natural Park; 50 per cent of their proceeds will support The Wildlife Trusts’ work fighting nature loss across the UK.

One-of-a-kind watches support humanitarian aid and heritage crafts

Eleven independent watchmakers have donated a unique timepiece to Phillips’ Geneva Watch Auction: XXI this spring. Their proceeds will benefit the Philippe and Elisabeth Dufour Foundation, which provides food, water, healthcare, housing and education to communities around the world, all while preserving artisanal crafts. Top lots include a Philippe Dufour Simplicity crafted from pink gold and real butterfly wings and Havid Nagan’s first ever round watch: the Classic One Prototype.