Harnessing art to spur entrepreneurship in Live6

Equal Voice Network looked at low voter turnout rates in El Paso and decided that just registering voters wasn’t enough. The coalition developed a creative way to increase education and engagement in local issues: a game. Votería is a play off of Lotería, a traditional Mexican pastime similar to bingo, with updated images and text explaining key current issues and political figures.

In a rapidly gentrifying Mexico City neighborhood, two artists refurbished an icon and set up an altar for Santa Mari La Juaricua, a saint to protect residents from eviction. The saint raises awareness and acts as a reminder about housing issues and the icon has been taken up by the residents and has been used in processions and protests.

The Kenan Trust is philanthropic foundation that supports “social practice art,” in which the arts facilitate change like restoring homes in urban areas and revitalizing immigration services. Their funds have reached the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Guggenheim Museum of Art, and the Laundromat Project. A recent $6million program supports 21 New York City-based arts organizations that engage with hard to reach communities. Kenan argues that its approach is not “charity” but “justice.”

Favelas, what some people might perceive as gang-filled slums surrounding the developed part of Rio de Janeiro, are in fact brimming with creative resilience that demonstrates the ingenuity of people in the face of a government that turns its back on them. Though gangs do exist, there are photographers attempting to show all views of the city. One man has transformed a trash hill into a garden. Others have built governing authorities to support their neighborhoods. All these people continue to innovate in the face of daily challenges.

In the midst of a seemingly increasingly divided political and racial landscape, some artists of color are pushing back to create art that represents their own non-White communities. Some artists have chosen to do this by recreating Norman Rockwell’s paintings, which in the earlier part of his career mainly showcased White people. “The image haunted me because of the world we live in,” the artist said, referring to today’s divisive political climate. “I wanted to imagine what it would look like today.”

Building community around storytelling preserves cultural heritage. Across Lebanon, individuals and institutions like the Lebanese Ministry of Culture and the Theatre Monnot in Beirut are working to preserve oral culture as a medium for storytelling. Initiatives, including the long-running International Storytelling Festival and Beirut’s Hakaya, bring together storytellers, known as hakawati and hakawatiye.

Public art adds value to communities that have experienced decline in recent decades. In towns like Mansfield and Marietta, Ohio, public art plays a positive role. Murals created by groups like Mansfield Murals Inc., or by other local artists, enhance public buildings and offer a way for residents to connect and express their history. In Marietta, the Marietta Community Foundation funds the city’s Public Arts Committee.

A more diverse theater scene requires arts and culture organizations that embrace and reflect communities of color. In Detroit, Michigan, the nonprofit Black and Brown Theatre works to eliminate barriers for actors of color. The organization fosters a supportive network, casting actors, directors, and staff from communities of color in the Detroit area. Still, disparities in access to funding for arts organizations focused on racial minorities remain a challenge.

Layette is replatforming itself to embrace local culture over a dangerous oil dependency. CREATE, a voter-approved initiative in the city, funds cultural events and festivals to create new economic drivers and to promote the cultural legacy of the region. The fund draws upon money designated from a larger pool of surplus property tax revenue, as well as from philanthropic donations.

The Spanish-Language Community Advisory Network works with a performing arts center in Great Barrington, Massachusetts, to bring in Latino audiences by showing culturally-relevant films, reducing language barriers, and even inviting the films’ cast and crew to the screenings.