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IMAZ Foundation Launches Cultural Platform with Soccer-Themed Silent Auction

“Chapter One: Eleven Artists. Eleven Balls. Eleven Homes,” introduces a new nonprofit that ties collecting directly to social impact

By Alexandria Sillo
Person wearing black gloves carefully holds a blue patterned sphere in a wooden box lined with white tissue paper.
Maya Makino. Photo: Courtesy of IMAZ Foundation

This month, IMAZ Foundation will present its inaugural exhibition titled “Chapter One: Eleven Artists. Eleven Balls. Eleven Homes,” which will help launch the new non-profit, cultural platform that aims to link collecting with traceable social impact. While the foundation is not soccer-based, the first venture is timed to resonate with the FIFA World Cup.

The first iteration, curated by Javier Martin, brings together eleven contemporary artists, including Dustin Yellin, Lucia Hierro, Jamel Robinson, Sebastian Errazuriz, Ryan Schneider, Soraya Abu Naba’a, Vincent Beaurin, Wes Aderhold, Jose Duran, Maya Makino, and Diana Rowe, who were invited to reinterpret the soccer ball. Each finished product will be featured at a silent auction, where the final result of each ball will go towards funding the construction of a home for a single mother and her children in Quito, Ecuador.

Person sitting indoors writing on a soccer ball with a marker, focused and wearing a white shirt.
Diana Carla Rowe. Photo: Courtesy of IMAZ Foundation
Person using a torch on a soccer ball filled with concrete and nails on a table in a monochrome setting.
Jamel Robinson. Photo: Courtesy of IMAZ Foundation
A sculptural object on a pedestal resembling a split soccer ball with a wrapped upright handle and nails inside.
Jamel Robinson. Photo: Courtesy of IMAZ Foundation

“Curating this project was about creating a dialogue between artists whose practices speak to material, memory, and transformation,” says Martin. “My purpose was to bring together voices that feel distinct on their own, but become even more powerful when placed in conversation, turning the exhibition into a poetic space of meaning, care, and collective impact.”

Sculpture resembling a weathered soccer ball with a human face, displayed on a pedestal against a gray background.
Wes Aderhold. Photo: Courtesy of IMAZ Foundation
Colorful patchwork soccer ball displayed on a gray pedestal against a plain background.
Lucia Hierro. Photo: Courtesy of IMAZ Foundation
Abstract sculpture on pedestal, featuring a spherical base with interlocking geometric metal shapes and vibrant colors.
Jose Duran. Photo: Courtesy of IMAZ Foundation

While the first chapter, which is on view beginning June 24, focuses on sport, future editions will focus on fashion, craft, music, and more. “Art is one of the most powerful cultural forces we have,” says Sami Deller, founder of IMAZ Foundation. “But too often its impact ends the moment the room empties. IMAZ exists to change that. Every ball sold builds a home — a real one, lived in by a real family. Collecting becomes participation. Ownership becomes consequence.”

Designer examining athletic shoe prototype at a workspace with a notebook and other design tools on a table.
Sebastian Errazuriz. Photo: Courtesy of IMAZ Foundation
Artist in a studio surrounded by brushes and sketches, concentrating on cleaning a cloth with paint splatters on clothes.
Wes Aderhold. Photo: Courtesy of IMAZ Foundation
Artist focuses on sketching intricate black and white abstract drawing in a dimly lit studio setting.
Jose Duran. Photo: Courtesy of IMAZ Foundation

“Chapter One: Eleven Artists. Eleven Balls. Eleven Homes,” is on view at The Atelier at Ideal Glass Studios in New York