Wunderman raised $10,000 in a celebrity charity auction April 14 to generate funds for the End Hunger Network, a charity created by actor Jeff Bridges.
Held at the Y&R Building on Madison Avenue in New York, the live auction featured celebrity art and sketches from Bridges, Bo Derek, Buzz Aldrin, Ed Harris, John Forsythe, David Duchovny and Roberta Peters, among others.
Bidders included Sir Martin Sorrell, chairman of Y&R and Wunderman parent WPP Group PLC; former Wunderman chairman Lester Wunderman; former Burson-Marsteller chairman Harold Burson; and Ann Fudge, chairman of Young & Rubicam Brands.
Wunderman offices in New York and Chicago sent a blank, 5-by-7-inch canvas to clients, friends and staff. They were asked to create their own work of art. More than 300 pieces were received and auctioned at the New York event.
The Chicago office's auction continues online at www.bids4thekids.com. The site features works from NASCAR driver Bobby Gordon, National Hot Rod Association driver Kenney Bernstein, golfer Julie Ingster and singer Michelle Branch.
The auction germinated from an internal event hosted last year at Harrison Troughton Wunderman, London. Steve Harrison, the agency's managing director, conceived it as a way to highlight the staff's talent over the holidays.
