Blog
Aug 20, 2015
Housing is widely regarded as an essential human need, and—as residential building stock—it’s often one of the first visual signals within a community. As HUD Secretary Julian Castro recently tweeted, “A home is more than four walls and a roof, it’s a springboard from where folks can reach their dreams.” While housing literally refers to the spaces... Read More
Aug 18, 2015
We’re excited to kick-off a new series of posts focusing on creative placemaking resources. You’ll notice that our website now sports a Library which will contain a combination of best practices, toolkits, and other interesting material that we come across over time. It will be a mix of foundational resources that long pre-date our work, and new material at... Read More
Aug 13, 2015
Right off the bat, Rupal Sanghvi pointed out that “Public Health” might be a better title for this matrix sector over “Health and Human Services” to reflect this broader conceptualization when considering the contributions of arts and culture. Public health and wellness are not limited to the confines of clinical care or services, whereas often health and human... Read More
Aug 11, 2015
We recently had a chance to sit down with Lyz Crane, our Deputy Director, to talk big picture about the work she’s been doing on the Community Development Investments. It’s always a treat to grab a beer with a colleague and indulge in the kind of far-ranging conversation that staff meetings and formal agendas don’t allow, and Lyz... Read More
Aug 07, 2015
According to the International Economic Development Council, "no single definition incorporates all of the different strands of economic development." For the purposes of our Community Development Matrix, we focus on the actions that stakeholders and policy makers take to grow the economy of a municipality or region, specifically around retaining and expanding existing businesses, growing new businesses, and... Read More
Aug 04, 2015
Exactly three months ago today, the ArtPlace team was in Philadelphia kicking off our annual Grantee Summit. We welcomed 300 grantees and partners to take part in two-and-a-half days of sharing, learning, and what we hope was a generally good time. The annual Summit is part of our Fieldbuilding work, led by Prentice and me, which focuses... Read More
Jul 30, 2015
Those who have been following ArtPlace’s progress closely know that we talk about our work as investing in arts-based strategies to help achieve place-based outcomes in order to reposition arts and culture as a core sector of community planning and development. In order to make sure that we are covering the entire field of community planning and development, we... Read More
Jul 27, 2015
Veasna and I just returned from Kentucky and, in short, it lived up to its would-be tagline: Kentucky Kicks Ass. We had a chance to connect with grantees in Lexington, Hazard, Whitesburg, and Cumberland; and I was able to say a few words at the Community Development Society’s annual conference.
First and foremost, thanks for the hospitality from everyone... Read More
Jul 23, 2015
I am just back from a summer visit to see my grandmother and extended family in Cleveland, OH. As aunts, uncles, cousins, and extended family paraded through her house, I kept hearing versions of the same questions: “What is it you do? Creative placemaking? What is that?” (To which Grandma would inevitably respond, “I don’t know what... Read More
Jul 20, 2015
Last month, Director of National Grantmaking F. Javier Torres traveled to Georgia to attend a convening hosted by Grantmakers in the Arts. Javier also took some time to visit ArtPlace grantees in the area, including the Paradise Garden project in Summerville, a rehabilitation effort to preserve the home of renowned artist Howard Finster. Collaborative partnerships across local and... Read More