Community Engagement, News & Updates
Now + There
Lot Lab Public Programs: Connecting Together

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. 

Lot Lab Public Programs: Connecting Together
News & Updates
Now + There
Meet Kate Herlihy!

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.

Meet Kate Herlihy!
News & Updates
Now + There
Meet Marguerite Wynter!

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!

Meet Marguerite Wynter!
Now + There
What It’s Like to be a Public Art Ambassador

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! 

What It’s Like to be a Public Art Ambassador
Critical Reflections & Opinion
Leah Triplett Harrington
Artists at Work

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.  

Artists at Work
,

Inside Out Project — surprise second site!

,

Great news! JR's Inside Out Project Photobooth truck is returning tomorrow, Thursday, Oct. 8, to Boston!

The truck's new location is Back Bay Station. So if you can't make it today, make arrangements to get over tomorrow and don't miss out on "the people's art project".

Have extra time tomorrow and want to earn our eternal gratitude? Sign up to volunteer.

 

"Faces of Boston"
WHEN: Thursday, October 8th, 11am – 6pm
WHERE: Back Bay Station
145 Dartmouth Street, Boston, MA 02116
MBTA Orange line and commuter rail
FREE

Let's make this look a whole lot better...with your face!
(Back of the station. Truck will be on the front, 145 Dartmouth Street.)

,

Learning From Our Communities Wrap-Up

,

Learning From Our Communities is a simple, small community engagement project we initiated for the Emerge festival at City Hall, and decided to bring to the Boston Center of the Arts Open Studios weekend as well. We asked the public a variety of questions regarding their thoughts and opinions on what their neighborhoods need as well as the gems and resources they cherish.

Beach Reads-Public Art Style

Kate and I have had the beach constantly on our minds as we transition into this sweltering August weather. We both fantasize about lying on an obnoxiously bright towel at a picturesque sandy spot with a good book while we work away at our respective desks in our closet size office. So in an attempt to live out our fantasy vacation, we have compiled a list of 5 great beach reads, public art style. Safe for non-beach goers too!  Guest post by Now and There staffer Audrey Hsia.

,

inMotion: Memories of Invented Play

,

We sat down with Amy Archambault, the BCA’s Summer 2015 Public Art Resident, on the eve of the opening of her first interactive public art work, inMotion: Memories of Invented Play, and chatted about how she’s successfully transitioning from the unconventional artist/builder to public artist. 

Play in Public Art Wrap-Up

What comes to mind when you think about public art in Boston? Boston is a city rich in history, but also in imagination. We’re a mecca for start-ups and people who believe anything is possible. We know how to have fun too! Does our art reflect that?

It's starting to. Whimsical public art is reinvigorating the cities public spaces and gaining national attention: from Höweler + Yoon Architecture’s iconic Swing Time at the Lawn on D, to Janet Echelman’s ethereal sculpture on the Greenway, to Figment’s upcoming Giant Typewriter. As part of our mission to help Boston define its public art identity, Now +There joined forces with theBoston Society of Architects and the D Street ArtLAB at the Lawn on D for "Play in Public Art," a conversation with the artists, architects, and citizens who are making public art happen in Boston.

PLAY IN PUBLIC ART, July 9

We're excited to co-sponsor another panel discussion, Play in Public Art, and we're taking the topic very seriously – by holding it outside among a temporary installation of giant rabbits at the Lawn on D!

Please join Now and There with co-sponsors BSA Space and the D Street ArtLab, on July 9, 6–7pm forPlay in Public Art a lively discussion with the artists, architects and citizens who are making public art happen in Boston. We’ll explore the role of play in three current public art topics – spectacle, site, and architecture – in a fast-paced, round robin discussion followed by Q&A.

Valuing art over policy, and action over talk, at the Public Art Network (PAN) pre-conference

Having recently visited Chicago for the Americans for the Arts Public Art Network pre-conference N+T director Kate Gilbert calls on Greater Boston to create bold, temporary projects during the 2016 conference. 

It’s understandable how a public art freak from Boston can get cultural envy visiting Chicago. Rich in monumental, plaza-anchoring sculpture and steeped in a history of financial and political backing for the arts, Chicago gives us pause, asks us to look at our challenges, and ultimately calls us to be a bolder, unified Greater Boston.

Valuing the Artist's Vision First

How will artists be part of placemaking and public art in Boston? On May 6, 2015 we hosted the"Where's the Art?" panel at the Boston Center of the Arts to discuss just that. Moderated by our director Kate Gilbert, artists Cedric Douglas, Megan McMillan, Liz Nofziger, and Rob Trumbour spoke about the definitions of public art and what we can do to support more of it in our communities.