As part of our commitment to fostering a more vibrant city through bold public art, we strive to build culturally responsive relationships through our partnerships and participatory programs. This year at Lot Lab is no different; we are connecting with the community of Charlestown and beyond through dynamic programming of performance, spoken word, theater, workshops, and much more.
Fresh off the incredible feat of bringing Simone Leigh’s spectacular artworks from Boston to Venice and then to Boston, Kate Herlihy brings to Now + There balanced respect for artists’ vision with planning rigor. blu prinston, N+T Communications Assistant, chatted with Kate about how early access to arts education, mentorship, and teamwork make her ready to “pay it forward” as N+T’s Managing Director.
As a veteran of two Chicago Architectural Biennales, Marguerite Wynter brings FOMO-inducing stories of events we all missed out on—did we hear joy riding through the South Side?—and a deep commitment to engaging community in the co-creation of public art. Learn more about Marguerite and drop her a line to welcome her to a new event, space, or idea!
Now that we’re getting ready to launch Lot Lab in the Charlestown Navy Yard on June 7, I’ve been reflecting a lot on my Now + There journey, which began with me becoming a Public Art Ambassador two summers ago. If you’re considering becoming a Public Art Ambassador for Lot Lab, I hope my reflections about my time as a PAA can help to guide you!
Talking to artists and community members--listening and learning from them--brings life to all our projects. This year of Mending looks at stories of innovation, global connection, individual perseverance, and tenacity, weaving together the impossible and offering opportunities to amplify what is most delicate (collective joy), transient (dreams), or everlasting (love) in our interconnected world.
Our 2020 Accelerator artists, Shaka Dendy, Ang Li, Karthik Pandian, Gabriel Sosa, and Yu-Wen Wu, successfully completed a six-month intensive designed to demystify the process of creating public art and will each receive a $25,000 stipend to realize their projects in over 7 Boston neighborhoods between now and September 2021.
A list of just a few of the resources and tools that have been speaking to us over the last week as we deepen our commitment to anti-racism and equity. Shared with some insight from the N+T Team into what the work of educating ourselves brings up as we come to grips with the magnitude of the work we have ahead of us to live into our vision for helping create a radical cultural shift in Boston.
Today, as righteous outrage and deep collective and compounding grief over the unjust killing of George Floyd smolders across the US, the need to interrogate our continuous perpetuation of institutional racism, police brutality, and systemic oppression is urgent, raw, and coursing through the public consciousness. And at N+T we know the work is on us to meet the discomfort head-on with both intentionality and urgency.
When funders demonstrate their confidence in our work and the city places the arts as a core pillar of the city’s economy, we can’t help but feel hopeful that public art will remain a part of Boston’s identity in the years to come. Read on to share in our gratitude for the unwavering support of a handful of generous and dedicated funders who have remained steadfast during the COVID-19 crisis.
We set out on this, Now + There's fifth curatorial year, to help realize the works and vision of thirteen artists, all under the theme of Shared Power. 2020 was to be, and now more than ever will be the year we recognize our commonality and agency. Click here to read a new post from Executive Director Kate Gilbert about how we’re facing the future and casting a vision for how we redefine our “public” with intentionality and grace.
