Project 22

Colin "Big C" Hoffman is a marine veteran from the San Francisco Bay Area, who is looking to bring about understanding and change to the serious issues surrounding mental health and suicide amongst U.S. military veterans. He is a visual artist, author and poet, who uses his own experience with depression and other issues caused by his PTSD to shine a light on the veteran suicide epidemic.

Hoffman holds a bachelors degree in speech communications and a Masters in public administration, and he began doing art professionally in 2012. He is using this project and art to bring change to our current epidemic among veterans, and he also uses his art as his own therapy.

Veteran-based art was a part of what he was doing from day one. One of the first significant pieces he shared with the public was an illustration called "22 daily" that he created in 2014 and was featured in the DeYoung Fine Arts Museum in San Francisco in 2015.

When asked how many brothers he has lost to suicide, he responded "22 brothers and sisters daily," When pressed further on the issue, he said, "there was one specific brother that drove me to go from making art about veteran suicide to making it an outright cause." In May of 2023, a veteran turned artist, who was an influence in his life lost his battle with his thoughts of suicide.

What is project 22

Project 22 is a way for Hoffman to advocate for his fellow veterans and himself to make the public aware of the veteran suicide epidemic and mental health care short-comings in the hope that we can bring about positive change.

On October 17, 2023 at the State Capital Building in Sacramento, he debuted three of the pieces that will be featured in his solo show in the Spring. He will be exhibiting his work for an art installation at the Z3 Gallery in San Bruno, with pieces designed to make people think, reflect and then act. The installation will open on Saturday May 18, 2024, but the goal of the project is to create opportunities for continuous advocacy.

What will your donations be used for? Your support will allow Hoffman to bring to life his many thoughts, heartaches and frustrations in an experience that will open the eyes of many and lead to the next steps of creating change through leading others to action, with a goal to make changes to the mental health care opportunities for U.S. Veterans.

The funds will go toward the materials necessary to create the art work as well as the venue and running of the event itself, along with the beginning seed costs for a permanent installment of a "22 statue" to be placed in a public setting. They will assist with Veteran's Comicon in San Francisco on November 11, where pieces from the show will also be displayed and the project will be promoted as he speaks on a panel and hosts a booth at the event. Any further generosity will allow Colin to continue the advocacy.

Colin would appreciate you including your name with the donations, so he can properly credit those who assisted in his mission, but it is by no means a requirement. Anonymous donations will also be gladly accepted.