How Americans for the Arts Works in this Space

Programming

  • The Jorge and Darlene Pérez Prize in Public Art & Civic Design celebrates and highlights the work of individuals who support, develop, and manage the incorporation of art into the design of places and spaces across the United States. The Pérez Prize in Public Art & Civic Design program – which bears the names of internationally recognized philanthropists, Jorge M. Pérez and his wife, Darlene Boytell-Pérez – includes an annual prize that will be awarded on a rotating basis to an artist, public art administrator, or representative from the civic design field.
  • Municipal Artists Partnerships developed in relationship with A Blade of Grass is a “relationship guide” to forging strong and sustainable creative partnerships between local governments and artists. 
  • Webinars hosted in an ongoing basis to highlight equitable practices and community-infused projects at the intersection of arts and civic design. Webinars include Investing in Local Partnerships to Address Community Goals and Artists and Planning Civic Spaces

Advocacy

  • Saving Transit Art Resources (STAR Act) has been a focus of our federal advocacy work to address language in Federal Transit Administration legislation that prohibits the use of funding for the arts and non-functional landscape. Check out the Issue Brief or Webinar to learn more. 

Strategic Partnerships

Americans for the Arts builds strategic partnership with national organizations to ensure the arts are incorporated in all parts of American’s lives. Here are a few partnerships and projects that have been developed to support the integration of arts and civic design.

  • Partnered with the Arts & Culture Team with Transportation for America, a program of Smart Growth America to implement a National Endowment for the Arts-funded project to educate communities on how creative placemaking techniques can help address local transportation issues. The program resulted in three local State of the Art Transportation trainings with Mariposa County, CA, Bozeman, MT, and Buffalo, NY and a Do-It-Yourself toolkit for communities who want to incorporate the arts into transportation projects. 
  • Collaborated with the American Planning Association and the Massachusetts Area Planning Council to build a Creative Placemaking KnowledgeBase for planners and develop a creative placemaking strategy for the town of Natick, MA to explore how to incorporate the arts into planning projects. Americans for the Arts lead the evaluation process for the creative placemaking strategy and developed this report.  

Americans Believe in the Power of the Arts in Communities

Learn More About the Social Impact of the Arts

 

Examples of Arts & Civic Design
Click through these four examples of arts and civic design projects to get ideas on how to implement similar work in your community.

Programming

  • The Jorge and Darlene Pérez Prize in Public Art & Civic Design celebrates and highlights the work of individuals who support, develop, and manage the incorporation of art into the design of places and spaces across the United States. The Pérez Prize in Public Art & Civic Design program – which bears the names of internationally recognized philanthropists, Jorge M. Pérez and his wife, Darlene Boytell-Pérez – includes an annual prize that will be awarded on a rotating basis to an artist, public art administrator, or representative from the civic design field.
  • Municipal Artists Partnerships developed in relationship with A Blade of Grass is a “relationship guide” to forging strong and sustainable creative partnerships between local governments and artists. 
  • Webinars hosted in an ongoing basis to highlight equitable practices and community-infused projects at the intersection of arts and civic design. Webinars include Investing in Local Partnerships to Address Community Goals and Artists and Planning Civic Spaces

Advocacy & Impact

  • Saving Transit Art Resources (STAR Act) has been a focus of Americans for the Arts’ federal advocacy work to address language in Federal Transit Administration legislation that prohibits the use of funding for the arts and non-functional landscape. The STAR Act was created and introduced to Congress by Representative Alma Adams (NC-D). A committee made up of arts in transit managers from around the country agencies came together to highlight this issue and continue to drive the advocacy of STAR Act. Check out the Issue Brief or Webinar to learn more. 
  • In the 2018 public opinion poll What Americans Say About the Arts, the following impact points where gathered that relate to arts and civic design:
    • The arts unify our communities.” Seven in ten Americans believe the arts unify our communities, and two in five Americans have changed an opinion or belief based on an arts experience.
    • The arts improve the image and identity of our community.” The arts have a positive impact on communities with seven in ten Americans stating the arts improve not only the quality and the livability of their community, but also the image and identity.
    • We experience the arts in unexpected places.” Americans enjoy the arts in “non-traditional” venues, such as a symphony in the park, a performance in an airport, or exhibitions in a hospital or shopping mall (70 percent).

Strategic Partnerships

Americans for the Arts builds strategic partnerships with national organizations to ensure the arts are incorporated in all parts of American’s lives. Here are a few partnerships and projects that have been developed to support the integration of arts and civic design.

  • Partnered with the Arts & Culture Team with Transportation for America, a program of Smart Growth America to implement a National Endowment for the Arts-funded project to educate communities on how creative placemaking techniques can help address local transportation issues. The program resulted in three local State of the Art Transportation trainings with Mariposa County, CA, Bozeman, MT, and Buffalo, NY and a Do-It-Yourself toolkit for communities who want to incorporate the arts into transportation projects. 
  • Collaborated with the American Planning Association (APA) and the Massachusetts Area Planning Council which lead to the buildout of a APA Creative Placemaking KnowledgeBase for planners, and to the development a creative placemaking strategy for the town of Natick, MA. Americans for the Arts lead the evaluation process for the creative placemaking strategy and developed this report