THE ARTS AS INTEGRAL TO PROCESSES OF URBAN COMMUNITY REVITALIZATION AND CIVIC ENGAGEMENT

Friday, January 25th, 2008
9am-5:30pm
Tan Oak Room, Martin Luther King Student Union
University of California, Berkeley

Art and artists have come to be seen as catalysts for neighborhood change, both positive and negative. This symposium is part of a larger endeavor at UC-Berkeley that seeks to construct a multi-disciplinary understanding of the arts as integral to processes of community revitalization and civic engagement, in the Bay Area, nationally and internationally. Over the day, we will examine what creative venues mean for neighborhood identity from the perspective of community-based arts organizations, neighborhood advocates, funders and the artists themselves. The symposium will explore the roles that arts and cultural activities can play in neighborhood improvement and community-building. Do arts organizations inevitably lead to the destabilization of neighborhoods, or can certain types of organizations foster community stability? How can the arts reshape community perceptions? How might the arts as social practices be better integrated into neighborhood fabric?

This symposium brings together a variety of professionals, foundation administrators, philanthropists, policymakers, scholars, graduate students, artists, and others who are interested in thinking together about our key questions.

Symposium Notes
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Arts-Community Presentation
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Artspace Presentation
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Mapping the Field: Arts-Based Community Development Presentation
William Cleveland
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Undivided: New Paradigm Community Development Presentation
Arlene Goldbard
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Simon Arts Facility Presentation
Joshua Simon
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