PA’s overarching goal is the empowerment and financial support of artists, who, by virtue of their work, support community development solutions to some of the Bay Area’s most pressing challenges. PA provides services to artists, businesses, neighborhoods, and residents through innovative arts programming. Since its inception, PA has actively managed four distinct programs:
– Hot Spots/Music Safety (in association with Lava Mae), a music-based program supporting displaced/homeless communities by providing social service-related organizations with live music performances to enhance a sense of security and community in lieu of law enforcement services for similar programs.
– Unused Spaces, an initiative to activate vacant/unused urban spaces (e.g. homes, businesses, streets, etc.) in order to build community through the arts. By converting previously unused spaces into performance venues/artist studios/galleries that are free and open to the public, emerging artists are able to interact with community members in SF to beautify marginalized and blighted areas.
Our Covid-19 response programming includes:
– Restore-49, a public art program that has worked with local artists to paint over 50 murals for shuttered businesses in SF, serving local businesses and neighborhoods that might otherwise suffer from vandalism and blight.
– Artivate: Public Art Now!, a community-art mentorship program for Bay Area artists aged 13-18 that provides students with connections into the arts world, a stipend for participation, and most importantly the confidence to jumpstart a career in the arts.
These programs, particularly those developed in response to COVID-19, allow PA to fill the gap for artists who have lost professional opportunities due to the pandemic while building an educational curriculum centered around public art for students who are missing out on real-time opportunities in the current online learning environment. These programs also encourage healthier urban living and community-oriented solutions to current challenges.