Charity Work

The Butterworth Gallery contributes regularly to chosen charity auctions and fundraisers. The family believes in the power of art to inspire and raise funds and awareness for a variety of worthwhile causes and in doing what it can to help. Howard Butterworth has always supported charities close to his heart since becoming a full-time artist in 1977. Mary not only follows in her father's footsteps by painting, but also strongly believes in supporting charities. Together with their artwork they have helped raise over 200k for variety of different causes over the years.

Helping to make North-east Scotland's cancer and haematology care the best it can be

20 for 20 Voyage - As part of Friends of ANCHOR's 20th anniversary in 2017, the charity launched its biggest fundraising appeal ever by pledging £1 million to the University of Aberdeen’s ambitious £4.5m project to attract and recruit a world-class cancer research team to the North-east of Scotland. Both artists created designs for the Friends of ANCHOR 20for20 voyage which saw twenty large anchor sculptures placed in open spaces around the country for the public to enjoy and admire. These twenty sculptures were then auctioned in November at the Chester Hotel. Howard and Mary's Sculptures raised the highest values that night for their sculptures 'The artists' garden' and 'We are stardust' raising £28k and £22k. In total an amazing £349,000 was raised for this cancer charity which means so much to both Howard and Mary. 'We are stardust' is now located outside The Chester hotel in Aberdeen.

ANM Group anniversary auction (2020) - Marking 30 years of the Thainstone Centre. The top bid of the night was £8000 for a limited edition print of “The Roup” donated by The Butterworth Gallery. In total the event raised £64,000 for Friends of Anchor.

Wild Dolphins (2014) - the award winning Wild Dolphins project arrived in Aberdeen which raised over half a million pounds for the ARCHIE Foundation and the WDC. ARCHIE was established as the official charity of Royal Aberdeen Children’s Hospital, to raise funds that would ‘Make the Difference’ between the high standards of care and a total child and family centred experience. Whale and Dolphin Conservation is the leading global charity dedicated to the conservation and protection of whales and dolphins.

Find Howard (2015) - Howard celebrated his 70th birthday by creating #FindHoward. Over the summer he painted 12 pictures in 12 different locations around Scotland. All 12 originals were then auctioned at The Marcliffe at Pitfodels in October with 30% of the proceedings donated to The ARCHIE Foundation. In total an amazing £16,000 was raised by Howard for the charity which used the funds to create a children's digital art gallery for patients to share their artwork within RACH.

Oor Wullie (2016 & 2018) - Howard and Mary created designs for the Wild in Art "Oor Wullie Bucket Trail" and “Oor Wullie Big Bucket Trail” in association with DC Thomson, once again raising funds for ARCHIE. The respective projects raised an incredible £883,000 and £1.3M when the "Wullies" were auctioned off at final events. 'The Amazing Oor Wullie' is now located in the CAMHS garden.

Since 1983, Clan has supported anyone affected by cancer, providing emotional and practical support to ensure those peoples wellbeing needs are being taken care of at all states of the cancer journey.

Light the North (2021)- Clan Cancer Support, in partnership with Wild in Art, shone a light across the north-east, Moray, Orkney and Shetland with ‘Light the North’ the lighthouse trail, from 9 August to 17 October 2021. It was the latest art sculpture trail in Scotland to inspire artists, schools and the public from across the country while raising funds for Clan Cancer Support At the end of the trail, each of the lighthouse sculptures were auctioned off raising £324,200 for Clan Cancer Support.

Since Maggie’s opened their first centre in 1996, the charity has developed a programme of support that is proven to help people with cancer and their loved ones take back control. Maggie’s relies almost entirely on voluntary donations to be able to offer this high quality, professional support.

The Auction event with Lyon & Turnbull in Edinburgh (2021) and the exhibitions at The Chester Hotel in Aberdeen (2016 & 2018) were a unique opportunity to support this important charity and acquire work by some of Scotland's best loved contemporary artists.

Maggies Penguin Parade (2018) - 80 giant Penguins were seen across the city of Dundee, and as far afield as Kirriemuir, Brechin, Perth and St Andrews.. From golfers to comic book characters, pilots to footballers each Penguin showcases a one-off design inspired by everything from the history of Dundee to climate change. Howard's 'Poppy' was one of the star attractions!

Other Chosen Charities & Events

'Postcards from home' - (2021) - Grampian Hospitals Art Trust

'An Evening with Mary Louise Butterworth' (2019) – Grampian Hospitals Art Trust

'Cat Parade' (2017) – Unicef/CLAN/Denis Law Legacy Trusts' Streetsport Initiative

'A breath of fresh air' Art Evening with Howard Butterworth (2015) – Rotary club of Aberdeen Deeside (Friends of Anchor/Teenage Cancer Trust)

Storm Frank (2015) - Local residents in Ballater raised funds for the devastation and flooding caused by the storm. Howard donated a large original oil river picture to the auction called “November” which raised £8000 for his home town.

'Butterworths' (2011) - Howard and Mary were invited to create an exhibition for the Foyer by SMART consultants. The Foyer charity work to alleviate youth homelessness and unemployment.

Woodlands Garden Fundraiser (2010) – Garden of remembrance, reflection and recuperation for the 4 5 Commando Royal Marines regiment in Arbroath.

'Reflections' (2003) – A retrospective exhibition of Howard Butterworth's work at the National Trust For Scotland's beautiful North-east property - Duff House.

Children 1st (formerly RSPCC)
Children in Need,
The National Trust for Scotland
Cancer Research UK
Cornerstone
Marie Curie