Arts and Community Development

In response to the "philanthropic neglect of rural, small city and suburban communities in the region," The Heartland Fund, a donor collaborative housed at the Windward Fund, was launched in 2018 by the Franciscan Sisters of Mercy and the Wallace Global Fund, according to a piece in the National Committee for Responsive Philanthropy.

“Imagine a monument for today, for your city, for your community.” That's the question “New Monuments for New Cities,” a public art project, asked local artists when encouraging them to create proposals (in the form of posters) for new monuments. Houston, Austin, Chicago, Toronto, and New York City will produce an exhibition of the resulting 25 artworks specific to their site, as ArtNews reports.

The first annual impact report on the NYC Inclusive Creative Economy Fund, released by LISC NYC, looks at the creative economy as a driver of comprehensive community development.

A column in The New York Times is devoted to those who are combating social isolation, at a local level: community builders, weaving the social fabric.

“Why not put money in the hands of artists to spark projects that would inspire public imagination?”

That's the question the Barr Foundation and the New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA) asked as the Creative City program began in 2015 and there was a clear interest for more arts in Boston, write in a post San San Wong, director of Barr Foundation's Arts & Creativity and GIA board member, and Cathy Edwards, executive director of New England Foundation for the Arts.

Brion Gill (better known as Lady Brion), activist and spoken-word artist, led a walking tour of Baltimore that was part of the application process "to create what would be the first Maryland-designated arts and entertainment district dedicated to black arts and culture, in a city that happens to be two-thirds black," as Next City reports.

The door is heavy. I don’t remember if it is steel or wood, but it takes effort to open. We are a small group of four. A few more will join our group shortly. I lead the way inside. They said not to wear blue. I keep it simple — a black dress and gray pants that come just above my ankle. And black boots. My usual.

A publicly-owned space, ARTS at King Street Station, a combination gallery and offices for the Seattle Office of Art and Culture, as Next City points out, is the house for a new exhibit, yəhaw̓, that features 280 indigenous artworks.

A post in Medium points out "artists and governments have a future together," reflecting on how a group of residents had gathered together to brainstorm for a community garden and sculpture project following the call of artist Carolyn Lewenberg.

Amid conversations of gentrification and affordable housing, the presence of Westbeth Artists Housing in New York City is a key reminder of the importance of spaces like this one. Artsy provides an inside look at the first federally subsidized artists’ colony in the US.