Professionals

LA Commons engages comunities in the creation of art for public spaces that describes their unique stories, serving as a vehicle for dialogue, interaction, and better mutual understanding among Los Angeles communities. They strengthen community by enhancing everyone's sense of belonging and build stronger bonds between the diverse people in this community. "Art is a critical tool to bring underground community stories to light and shift to societal narrative that values everyone, not only the wealthy and powerful."

Out of Hand was started in 2001 to create a new kind of theater, a theater that reaches new audiences and meets people where they are with a strong commitment to ant-racism. Out of Hand works at the intersection of art, social justice, and civic engagement. The theatre works to spark conversations to build a better world by using the tools of theater to support and enhance the work of community partners. Out of Hand has four program areas: Equitable Dinner, Shows in Homes, Community Collaborations, and Education

Since 1969, the Dunedin Fine Art Center’s vision and commitment remains to create and grow a fine arts and cultural center, a public arts school and library, open at all times to the general public, and not restricted to any group or groups. To facilitate our continued vision, the Dunedin Fine Art Center is proud to provide classes, events, and exhibitions.

HOME is a creative civic engagement initiative informed by West Hill residents, led by Chameleon Village Theatre Collective. West Hill’s community development corporation (the West Hill Neighborhood Organization) strives to activate its dual-zoning (UPD40) district; however, engagement is limited. HOME used creative methods to inform residents, collect their input, and share their stories through performance. The project utilized a three part methodology to 1) survey residents to collect their input about what they think the neighborhood needs, 2) build infographics to keep residents engaged 3) and collecting residents’ stories about what HOME means to them and presenting their input as a performance activating a home in the neighborhood with their stories for an opportunity to connect with one another. The act of listening to community and working with community, not for community, helped make the performance process both accessible and reflective of the surrounding community.

Asé Arts is a community arts model that roots the work of artists as essential to building vibrant, viable economies. Centering Artists as core community assets, we are the culture-bearers, historical preservationists, and visionaries who build expansive strategies to lead us into the future. Investing in the arts as a foundational pillar to building resilient communities ignites systematic change. Which results in economically abundant communities that are rich in heritage, diversity, and social opportunity.

Since 2008, co-founders Max Frieder and Joel Bergner—first independently and later jointly— have led hundreds of Artolution community-based public art projects around the world. Artolution became incorporated as a non-profit corporation in 2016 with a focus on developing sustainable programs in communities where we have been active, to be facilitated by local artists trained by Frieder and Bergner.

As an artist, Nicole wants to see more art in her community. After teaching art to k-12 students, and working as a studio assistant for artists such as McArthur recipient Amalia Mesa-Bains, Nicole along with 4 follow female artists formed the nonprofit-The Artist Collective. When moving back to Southern California, Nicole wanted to create a similar nonprofit, thus the creation of Building Community Through Art.

Hank Willis Thomas is a photo conceptual artist working with themes of identity, history and popular culture. Eric Gottesman is an artist, teacher and organizer with his work in various collections including the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston and the Open Society Institute. The nonpartisan group has organized events, exhibitions, nationwide campaigns, and public art projects—including works by Pedro Reyes, Carrie Mae Weems, Jorly Flores, and Christine Sun Kim—to advocate for the importance of those core principles. In 2018, they launched the “50 State Initiative” timed to the midterm elections in the U.S., and sought to heighten civic engagement by coordinating exhibitions in every single state.

Using repurposed materials, Theater Gates founded the Rebuild Foundation. Gates creates work that focuses on space theory and land development, sculpture and performance. Drawing on his interest and training in urban planning and preservation, Gates redeems spaces that have been left behind.This foundation hosts exhibitions and event alongside a library within the transformed Stony Island Arts Bank. It also operates the Dorchester Art + Housing Collaborative.