SaveArtSpace is proud to present #FreeHappy, a public art exhibition on billboard ad space in New York, NY, starting December 1, 2025, curated by Cynthia von Buhler.

Happy is not happy. Torn from her natural habitat and herd in Thailand as a baby, Happy has spent nearly 50 years in captivity at the Bronx Zoo. Like humans, elephants are deeply social animals—they don’t thrive in isolation. Alone, they suffer from loneliness, stress, and depression. We want to give Happy the life she deserves: freedom, companionship, and care in an elephant sanctuary where she can finally be with others of her kind.

We invite artists of all ages and talents to submit their artwork between September 22 and October 20, 2025 in order to be considered for the exhibition. This is an opportunity to have your work exhibited on billboard ad space in New York, NY.

There is no application fee as this public art exhibition is made possible by Cynthia von Buhler.

Selected artists will be announced after November 3, 2025. Public art will be installed December 1, 2025 in New York, NY, and will be on view for at least one month.

Curator

Cynthia von Buhler is an award-winning American artist, author, and animal activist whose diverse body of work includes illustrated books for children and adults, street art installations, immersive theater productions, and international gallery exhibitions. Her children’s books emphasize compassion for animals and environmental stewardship. In 2019, she traveled to Australia’s Kangaroo Island to aid wildlife impacted by catastrophic fires, documenting her efforts in an illustrated reportage journal published in The Washington Post. In 2024, she went to Africa to document the Akashinga—an all-female anti-poaching unit—and is currently preparing that reportage for publication. Her eco-fable graphic novel Forestina is being adapted into an animated feature film by a major Hollywood studio, and she is building a 15-foot puppet of the title character to tour globally in support of reforestation. In 2025, von Buhler received an arts advocacy award from the Mark Twain Museum for her creative work on behalf of animals. She also runs The Fur Gnarl, a small sanctuary for rescued pigs, chickens, and pigeons.

Connect with Cynthia at @cynthiavonbuhler.

SaveArtSpace

Founded in 2015, SaveArtSpace is a non-profit organization that works to create an urban gallery experience, launching exhibitions that address intersectional themes and foster a message of social change that benefits the working class. By placing culture over commercialism, SaveArtSpace aims to empower artists from all walks of life and inspire a new generation of young creatives and activists.