he Australian Marine Conservation Society’s (AMCS) Annual Art for Sharks Auction will be held for the first time in Melbourne next Friday, 23 July.

“Victorians love art and our oceans,” says AMCS Communications and Fundraising Manager Ingrid Neilson, “and a lot of Melbourne artists have wanted to be involved in the show since its inception, so we thought we'd bring it to Melbourne to take advantage of that.”

Artists such as Michael Leunig, Brodie Ellis and Rhys Lee have joined forces with a list of forty-five accomplished painters and donated their work to the cause of helping save sharks and create awareness of their plight.

“Sharks in general are in real trouble and have declined by about ninety percent in the last half century,” explains Neilson. “Over seventy million are killed each year around the globe, mainly for their fins for shark fin soup. Sharks are definitely not a sustainable choice, they are long lived, slow growing and have few young and AMCS is asking people to take the flake off their plate and give sharks a break.”

If bidding for art isn’t your thing (there’s room for 250 people and forty-fove pieces of art on auction), you can make a donation on the night, sign up to become an AMCS Sea Guardian or buy a ticket in the ‘Giving Tree’ that has a range of prizes.

AMCS Patron, author Tim Winton, will also be speaking at the event.

www.amcs.org.au