Our Story

A&U Magazine was launched in 1991 as Art & Understanding by Editor-in-Chief and Publisher David Waggoner in response to the loss of so many of his peers from the creative community. Viewing AIDS as a cultural holocaust, Waggoner set out to create a forum for the creative responses of those living with HIV and AIDS, their peers, their caregiving circles, their families and loved ones. Through the pages of an attractive, glossy and commercially appealing publication such as A&U, the HIV community's works can be saved, published and archived for all time. A&U's David Waggoner hopes that his dedicated staff of writers and artists have helped elevate understanding and compassion about the disease. Over time the publication has recognized the need to archive various other creative, cultural, and educational responses to the AIDS pandemic: nutrition, treatment, and alternative therapies; cultural commentary; book and film reviews; celebrity interviews; HIV and AIDS organizations which are making a difference. As a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization, A&U's sole purpose is to benefit and serve the HIV community. Over the past eleven years, A&U has grown into a popular and well respected periodical and a valuable educational tool. Its nature is global and reflects the diversity of experiences of all those who are HIV-affected. A&U is an unusual hybrid publication whose readership reflects a cross section of society: leading intellectuals, business and civic leaders, artists, AIDS educators, AIDS activists, doctors, pharmacists, and others who are well-informed about the disease.

Our Mission

Art & Understanding, Inc. is a 501 (c) (3) nonprofit organization. The mission of Art & Understanding, Inc.'s A&U magazine is to collect, archive, publish and distribute the growing body of art, activism, and current events emanating from the AIDS pandemic. It was created for the HIV-affected community.