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Brighter Days - Susan Daly
Title: Brighter Days
Artists: Susan Daly in partnership with Mental Health Association in Atlantic County
We all have mental demons.
An electrical storm in our head
Some more than others.
We are forced to cocoon.
We suffer in isolation.
I am fine, not to worry.
Now asked to emerge.
Told things are different, and you must change.
How?
Some want to give up.
This chair is a safe place to sit and contemplate.
A place where you can reach out and talk to someone.
The numbers are at your fingertips.
Your phone is in your pocket.
Call.
Choose LIFE.
Tomorrow is a brighter day.
Photos Courtesy of Alex Mazzo
Zen Chair – Emma Owen
Title: Zen Chair
Artist: Emma Owen
Painting the Adirondack chair was an amazing opportunity and I had such a great time doing it! I painted a tropical beach scene to bring a warm welcoming feeling to the park that is so close to the beach. I was inspired to do this scene because I love the ocean and the summertime feeling. I want people to gravitate towards the bright colors of the chair, sit down, take a deep breath, and relax by the sea. I hope people feel a sense of serenity while sitting in this chair. Thank you for the opportunity to be a part of this experience.
Yemoja, Patron Spirit of the Oceans – Simone Squared
Title: Yemoja, Patron Spirit of the Oceans
Artists: Simone Squared
With our planet experiencing both environmental and spiritual distress, I wanted a piece that would evoke peace and love. I wanted something bright and uplifting that would make you smile. Yemoja, a Yoruba deity, is surrounded with African symbolism of Royalty, Creation, Energy, and Protection. Approach life from a “seat of love.”
Photos Courtesy of Alex Mazzo
Our Time to Shine - Artists from The Arc of Atlantic County
Title: Our Time To Shine
Artists: Artists from The Arc of Atlantic County
Artists who are attending art classes at The Arc of Atlantic County's Adult Training Center in Egg Harbor Township created this chair. Each artist contributed images to the chair that represented things in their lives that made them feel happy or proud. Some drew on paper first and transferred those designs to paint, while others painted their creations directly onto the chair. As a result, the chair shows many self-portraits and other faces, in addition to imaginative seascapes, colorful flowers, and cartoon characters. Many artists expressed a desire to sit in the chair upon installation and were very proud to contribute to this year’s 48 Blocks AC.
Photos Courtesy of Tim / Keenvision
Press Release: ‘48 Blocks Atlantic City’ Unites Community Virtually on August 7 - 9
Celebrate the diversity and culture of Atlantic City from the comfort of home this weekend as the fourth annual “48 Blocks Atlantic City” celebration goes live online Aug. 7-9
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – August 3, 2020
Atlantic City, N.J. – Celebrate the diversity and culture of Atlantic City from the comfort of home this weekend as the fourth annual “48 Blocks Atlantic City” celebration goes live online Aug. 7-9
“48 Blocks Atlantic City,” so named because Atlantic City is 48 blocks long, is a 48-hour celebration of the arts & cultural community of Atlantic City. A central goal of the event is to engage the regional community in the celebration of public art in Atlantic City as well as to enjoy and learn from the creative talents of its residents.
Joyce Hagen, executive director of the Atlantic City Arts Foundation (ACAF), says, “In the spring we made the decision to take 48 Blocks AC to an online format. I knew that many of the members our creative community would rise to the occasion and create program ideas to engage our audience – and indeed, they have! Being online offers new possibilities for them to share their talents.”
The three-day schedule includes live and recorded events with titles like “The Art of Cooking,” “Mad Libs for Adults,” and “You Are Here! Postcards from AC.” Viewers will be able to sit back and enjoy performances by the Bay Atlantic Symphony and the Atlantic City Ballet as well as learn how to juggle and how to make a memory doll that will hold one’s memories of COVID-19. The usual free jitney mural tours cannot run through the city, but there are two virtual mural tours included in the online event (one by bicycle), but people are also encouraged to take their own socially-distanced mural tours.
Hagen says the schedule is arranged in thematic blocks – yoga and meditative events in the mornings, Saturday afternoon is geared toward young and young-at-heart, Sunday afternoon features blocks of Atlantic City-themed segments and artist segments, early evenings are geared toward happy-hour segments, and evenings are relaxing events and theatrical productions.
Lisa Honaker, Dean of the School of Arts and Humanities of Stockton University agrees. “Stockton University is so happy and proud to continue our partnership in 48 Blocks AC in this meaningful way during these unique times,” she said. “”As an anchor institution in Atlantic City and the region, we delight in sharing our resources to strengthen the region, and value our relationship with ACAF as a creative partner.”
More information about the event is available at www.atlanticcityartsfoundation.org and on the AC Arts Foundation social media channels.
48 Blocks Atlantic City is a program produced by the Atlantic City Arts Foundation and its major partner Stockton University. It is a co-sponsored project of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts and Stockton University.
The Atlantic City Arts Foundation is an independent 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated to increasing public art access and fostering community art education in Atlantic City, NJ. Through programs and partnerships, ACAF promotes arts-based tourism and economic development initiatives while increasing community pride and civic self-esteem. Programs include 48 Blocks Atlantic City, Chalk About AC and ARTeriors.
Left to Right:
Yvonne Battle-Felton - photo credit © Ian Robinson. Yvonne will present a LIVE segment entitled "You are Here! Postcards from Atlantic City" on Sunday at noon. Yvonne will be presenting this online storytelling open mic in which five writers will have five-seven minutes to share fiction or non-fiction stories set in and/or inspired by Atlantic City.
Valerie Feo - Val will present a LIVE segment entitled "So Val Art - At Home Studio Tour" on Sunday at 4:30 pm. Valerie will welcome you into her home for a Virtual Gallery Tour of 6-8 original works of art.
Ray Tyler - photo credit © David Harris. Ray will present a LIVE segment entitled - "Poetry Curated by Raymond Tyler" on Saturday at 6:30 pm. Ray has invited a few poets to read original poetry with him during his event.
Tina Notaro - Tina will teach viewers how to juggle during a LIVE segment on Saturday at 3 pm. Have some juggling balls or balled up socks ready!
Press Release: The City of Atlantic City Partners with Community Organizations to Renovate the Lagoon Park Basketball Court
The City of Atlantic City is partnering with the Stay Hungry Sports organization and the Atlantic City Arts Foundation (ACAF) to renovate the William J. Porter, III Basketball Court in the Lagoon Playground of the Venice Park neighborhood.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – June 22, 2020
Atlantic City, N.J. – The City of Atlantic City is partnering with the Stay Hungry Sports organization and the Atlantic City Arts Foundation (ACAF) to renovate the William J. Porter, III Basketball Court in the Lagoon Playground of the Venice Park neighborhood. Other partners involved in the renovation include Covenant House Atlantic City, Sgt. Sealcoat Asphalt Maintenance, and Amber Art and Design (AAD).
Atlantic City Mayor Marty Small, Sr. says “I am honored that the Atlantic City Arts Foundation partnered with the City on this project. My administration’s goal is to support the growing arts community and get them to support our efforts to improve blight and public parks, like the William “Billy” Porter Court. We support the Stay Hungry Stop The Violence Basketball League as it brings exposure to our city near and far. We look forward to another peaceful & successful season on a brand new court from The Atlantic City Arts Foundation.”
Support for the project comes from the City of Atlantic City Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) Department via its K.R.P. (Knowing your Past…Realizing your Present…Preparing your Future) Initiative - Beyond Borders Program. The K.R.P. Initiative is a series of community-focused programs aimed at enhancing citizens' self-sufficiency through engagement with programs that expand knowledge while developing the leadership and social skills of participants.
The renovation of the court was inspired by the success of the five-week Stay Hungry Sports “Stop the Violence” Basketball Tournament held last summer in the park. The tournament featured some of the best-known South Jersey high school and college basketball players, and the games attracted crowds that surrounded the William J. Porter, III court at 1900 Columbia Ave.
Deshawn Ward, founder of the Stay Hungry Sports organization, is grateful for the court renovation and appreciates the efforts of everyone involved. Ward says, “Stay Hungry Sports is excited to be producing the second “Stop the Violence” Basketball Tournament in Lagoon Park this summer, and invites city residents to support the players and enjoy the games.”
Zach Katzen, program director for ACAF, adds “For a number of years, I’ve been following the work of a national nonprofit called Project Backboard that works with cities across the country to renovate courts in disrepair into mural-style courts. Inspired by their creations and the success the ACAF has had creating murals for 48 Blocks AC, we felt now was the time to bring the first art court to Atlantic City. After the success of last year’s Stay Hungry Sports basketball tournament, we felt they would be the perfect partners to work with on this historic project.”
All photos © Atlantic City Arts Foundation 2020.
Left to Right: Artist and ACAF Board Member Val Feo, Artist Christian Correa painting, Stay Hungry Mural in progress, Artist Charles Barwin mixing paint, drone shot of mural in progress.
Press Release: Atlantic City Arts Foundation continues to brighten the city with new murals during Covid-19
ACAF program manager Zach Katzen coordinated with local artist Charles Barbin to create a new mural this month at Kay-Vil Construction, located at 342 N. New Jersey Avenue in Atlantic City.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – April 15, 2020
Atlantic City, N.J. – The Atlantic City Arts Foundation started adding murals to Atlantic City in 2017 through their 48 Blocks AC program. There are now over 50 murals in the city that have been supported by ACAF, including 5 created during the city’s first mural week in May of 2019. Due to Covid-19, the organization has postponed their second mural week originally scheduled for May 11-17, 2020 but they are still committed to creating murals in the city.
ACAF program manager Zach Katzen coordinated with local artist Charles Barbin to create a new mural this month at Kay-Vil Construction, located at 342 N. New Jersey Avenue in Atlantic City. Using leftover paint the organization had on hand from previous mural projects, Charles created “PERSONAL SPACE”, the third mural on Kay-Vil’s building.
“PERSONAL SPACE was motivated & inspired by the desire to want to stay together, to congregate with our neighbors and our community, as a flock. We've recently been exposed to a world where we've been denied the choice to act socially in a group,” Barbin shares.
The mural features a soft yellow background and a colorful, textured cityscape. Barbin used an assortment of stencils and stamps to create texture and layers of color on the buildings. Wires cross the piece, full of birds quietly perched, appearing to be waiting.
“We've had to consider Spacing, recently termed distancing, being separate. Spaces instinctively functioning as motivations for attraction are now possible risks and thought of as repulsive. Birds often sit with each other on Wires waiting for an event as simple as a sunset to happen. Our crucial event is happening, now together we wait for it to set and start a new day,” explains Barbin.
ACAF hopes to create additional murals in the coming months, working with our local artist community. “Like our fellow non-profits, Covid-19 has impacted our funding. We are doing everything we can to secure funds so we may continue to create art in our city, serve our community, and invest directly in artists,” shares Joyce Hagen, ACAF’s executive director. “This is a challenging time for our city and we know that creativity, art, and inspiration are more important than ever in healing and connecting our community.”
All photos © Atlantic City Arts Foundation 2020.
An update to our community
Covid-19 has impacted us all. At Atlantic City Arts Foundation we’ve had to shift our program plans, and are working on new ways we can connect through the arts. What we know: We are committed to supporting & uplifting our community through the arts. What we don't know: When or how we'll be able to host our programming in 2020.
Covid-19 has impacted us all. At Atlantic City Arts Foundation we’ve had to shift our program plans, and are working on new ways we can connect through the arts.
What we know: We are committed to supporting & uplifting our community through the arts.
What we don't know: When or how we'll be able to host our programming in 2020.
48 Blocks AC is our flagship program, combining Atlantic City's largest mural arts program with a city-wide celebration of arts and culture. We love creating this program with all of you, and it is our goal to be able to still host a version of 48 Blocks AC in 2020.
Mural Week, planned for May 11-17, has been postponed. We've contacted mural applicants and continue to assess our options. We want to bring new murals to AC in 2020, and we have several artists who are interested & excited to do so whenever we're able. We're working with our friends from Amber Public Arts to create a mural in April and may be able to invite additional artists to create smaller murals while we remain socially distanced and at home.
Adirondack chairs are typically constructed by the team at NJCRDA in April for artists to pick-up and design. This is currently on hold, as the NJCRDA is working tirelessly to keep our city clean & safe. We're working with them to determine options for creating chairs later this year. If you've applied for a chair - please stay tuned!
48 Blocks AC Event Weekend is planned for June 19-21. It's not possible to know if we'll be able to host the event as planned. For now - we are accepting applications for projects (the programming for event weekend), in the hopes that we can invest in our creative community, bring our neighbors together, and celebrate Atlantic City in June! Apply here.
Chalk About AC, our city-wide chalking event, is on the calendar for October 10, 2020. We'll likely be on the other side of many precautions by then - so we're focusing on how we can make our 2020 event bigger & better than ever before. We're going to need your help! Stay tuned on how you can contribute.
ARTeriors is our most unique program, bringing together artists from varying levels of experience to transform underutilized space in Atlantic City. We are considering ways we can shift this program to suit the ever-changing landscape of our city, and are setting our sites on acquiring a permanent space for ACAF to host ARTeriors, house our offices, and expand our event programming. While we work from home, we're continuing to look into options and are looking forward to hosting a new ARTeriors soon.
Thank you to everyone who continues to support us and the work that we do. We know the arts play a major role in healing and connecting communities, and we are committed to continuing to serve our Atlantic City community!
Please - email us, message us on social media - let us know how you are doing and what you’d like to see from us. Together we can create the arts in Atlantic City, in any circumstances!
#create48 #doAC #thisisAC
Image credit: Sea Me GlowⓇ
Adirondack Chair Coloring Pages
What would you put on an Adirondack chair? We’ve created coloring pages so you can share what you’d put on a chair. You can download and print these sheets, or color them on a computer program.
What would you put on an Adirondack chair?
Atlantic City Arts Foundation has been working with the NJCRDA since 2017 to hire artists to create unique, colorful, fun chairs for the Atlantic City Boardwalk. This year they may be created a bit later than planned but we hope to still be able to add them!
We’ve created coloring pages so you can share what you’d put on a chair. You can download and print these sheets, or color them on a computer program.
Make sure to share them when you’re finished! Email us or post on Facebook/Instagram and tag @acartsfoundation.
Artist Resources during COVID-19
We realize this can be an especially difficult time for artists, freelancers, and self-employed creatives. We’re compiling a list of resources for funding, maintaining your business online, and staying connected.
If you have a resource to add to this list please email Loryn.
Resources
Conversation Series on How Artists Can Survive Times of Crisis - Fresh Arts’ series of online conversations related to how artists can work through sudden economic downturns. Topics will include crisis communication, emergency grants available to artists, applying for SBA loans, unemployment eligibility for freelancers, healthcare for artists, etc.
Panel: Artists In a Time of Global Pandemic (ASL & Captioned) [RECORDING] - For US-Based Freelance Artists and Cultural Workers in all Disciplines. HowlRound plus a group of artists, arts administrators, and others from around the US discussing how COVID-19 is impacting freelance artists (those who identify as independent contractors) from all disciplines and where artists can look for support in this complicated moment. The conversation focuses on shared resources (legal, advocacy, how to take your work virtual, finding emergency funding, and financial best practices in crisis) and building and grounding our national community.
Digital Tools for Artists to Run a Remote Career During Coronavirus - Tools to transition your business online & maintaining a remote career from Artwork Archive.
Financial Relief
COVID-19 Freelance Artist Resources - An aggregated list of FREE resources, opportunities, and financial relief options available to artists of all disciplines, designed to serve freelance artists, and those interested in supporting the independent artist community.
COVID-19 Resource List from National Endowment for the Arts - An aggregated list of resources compiled by the National Endowment for the Arts.
COVID-19 Emergency Funding and Artist Resources - A round-up of emergency funding sources and additional resources for artists from the blog I Care if You Listen.
Emergency Funds - All Disciplines - An aggregated list of funding resources compiled by WomenArts.
Financial Resources During COVID-19 - An aggregated list of funding resources compiled by Artwork Archive.
MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund - To help address the concerns of the music industry during this time, MusiCares has expanded their services to include lost income due to the cancellation of scheduled gigs or performances due to Coronavirus/COVID-19 precautionary measures.
Resources & Information for Artists & Arts Organizations - Financial relief options, information, resources, articles, and activities compiled by Americans for the Arts.
Rauschenberg Emergency Grants - Grants to assist professional artists of all disciplines in need of emergency medical aid. The program will provide one-time grants of up to $5,000 for unexpected medical emergencies. The grants are available to visual and media artists and choreographers who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents in the United States, District of Columbia, or U.S. Territories.
Small Business Guidance & Loan Resources - From the US Small Business Association.
Disaster Loan Assistance - From the US Small Business Association. Learn more & apply online.
Facebook Small Business Grants - Facebook is offering $100M in cash grants and ad credits for up to 30,000 eligible small businesses in over 30 countries.