ABOUT- Community Based Public Art Defined

DEFINED:

The term "community art" refers also to field of community, neighborhood and public art practice with roots in social justice and popular and informal education methods. In the art world, community art signifies a particular art making practice, emphasizing community involvement and collaboration. Community art is most often art for social change and involves some empowerment of the community members who come together to create artwork/s with artists. This is a growing national, international, regional and local field. Recently community arts and sustainability work or environmental action have begun to interface, including urban revitalization projects creating artwork at a neighborhood level.  find www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Community_arts

It is generally understood that art can be a catalyst for many things.  Public art has been used for years as a way to bridge communities, communicate values, and place making, among many others.  Community based public art is more than a artwork created by artist.   

Community based art starts and ends with the community in mind.  It originated as a means to encourage social change through hands on involvement.   Today it used as a communication tool.   It can be used to discuss the importance of STEM (Science, technology, engineering and math, or teach life skills.  It can be used to introduce city initiatives for development or promote a product or place. 

At the heart of it, An artist uses the creation of art to convey a message.  The message can be out rightly socially charged or covert.  The process and approach to engage the community becomes part of the art.  Successful public artist have studied art as well as humans.  The engagement has to speak to a large to number of people in a short amount of time.  It has to communicate in a language that everyone can understand and at a level that is inspiring and never condescending.  People should participate and never feel like they are being lectured to or just part of a commercial. 

The participants are physically engaged but not being viewed as volunteers. Participants of community based art are Co-Creators not volunteers.  The art process should be intuitive and easily understood.    The public will step in and do what's inspected without a long dialog of directions.   You want all the discussion to be on the  given message and not just on the directions.

You will know if you are part of a successful community based project if you forget your understood limitations, feel free to create and walk away with a feeling of connectives.

ABOUT- Deborah- Artful Transformation Program Specialist

Artful Transformation Program Specialist 

Deborah Landry is a creative visionary using art to engage and transform communities. She serves as a partner to clients who are focused of economical development , place making , and education with sustainability, environmental and social concerns. She Integrates art seamlessly into everything, including marketing, education, fundraising, economic development and place making. 

Deborah specializing in creative transformation of mission critical objectives into programs that are sustainable financially as well as operationally. She develops programs that integrate community involvement with an artistic process, resulting in a artful outcome. The artful outcome can be either permanent or temporary, sculptures or murals. They often  include an educational, marketing or fundraising component. 

Deborah offers public art consultation to help define artful goals, missions, and identify assets as well as partners that are often overlooked. She will help you develop artful strategies that utilize capital improvement, corporate and private funding. She works with public and non-profit groups to create a win-win return on investment, time and labor. 

When you ArtUP everything you do, you can transform your connection with your clients, customers, and community by creating a lasting engaging experience. You will never overlook the power of art again. Artful transformation could be what your missing in reaching your goals and visions.

ABOUT- Engaging Arts Worksheet- Vision and Need

MISSION:  Engaging arts mission is to design public engaging art project that use art as the vehicle to build stewardship and community.   The projects include education, promotion and marketing opportunities as well as fundraising if required.  The projects engage the public to create or take part in a small aspect of producing a larger collaborative work of art.   The entire process, from Initial request, public interaction, producing, designing and the final outcome is art.  The public engagement is a hands on  experience which includes mind, body and senses.

DISCOVERY SHEET: This sheet will help clarify your vision and needs.

1)      Describe the mission of your organization

2)      Describe who your primary and secondary customer

3)      Describe what you are wanting to say.  (Are you wanting to teach something or promote a product)

4)      Describe your partners, who do you work with, who do you want to work with.

5)      Describe what you have tried in the past, what were your successes and failures?

6)      What is your budget? (There is a additional discovery sheet for fundraising)

7)      Identify all your assets.  (this can be physical like land, building, art material or it can be people, accountant, lawyer, construction worker.)

8)      Describe what type of help you need.

ABOUT- Engaging Arts Design Process

Project Design Process

1)      Identify goals
a)      Identify established goals set by all entities working toward developing the region that can use art as a tool. 
b)      Within the goals identify the Teaching, Marketing, promotions, and community building opportunities.

2)      Analyze additional considerations
a)      Examine Site
b)      Explore participating groups
c)       Developed partnerships
d)      Plan goals and parameters

3)      Create Rough Project proposal
a)      Preliminary design concept approved
b)      Finalize the participating groups

4)      Create Final Design
a)      with detail budget

5)      Line up funding
a)      In-kind
b)      Grants
c)       Donors- public or private

6)      Establish time line
a)      Assemble collaborators
b)      develop Participatory list and contacts
c)       Hire help

7)      Run Program
a)      Community based workshops
b)      Internships and Mentorship

8)      Build and Install
a)      evaluation
b)      Documentation

9)      Celebration and unveiling

MURAL-Community Squared

"Community Squared" by Deborah Landry

Ogden Dunes Fire Department, Ogden Dunes , Indiana

Handmade Ceramic Tiles, Mosaic

375 individually crafted tiles by the community, representing what they treasure about their community.

The glass windows were a strong element that had to be taken in consideration in the original design concept.  The panels are deigned to unify the wall to create a cohesive installation.  The Pales are framed and hung salon style to give the viewer a feeling they are at a gallery.  The frames are artist created small beach and dunes scenes.  The colors are inspire by earth, sand, sky and water. 

The tiles must be seen in person to truly appreciate.  If you do visit the mural be sure to find your tile, photograph it and hash tag it, #CommunitySquared.  If you did not make a tile just photograph your favorite and send me a message.  I love to hear from you.