Civic Engagement Examples

Civic engagement through interactive and participatory arts festivals

The arts have been known to be good community generators. Many arts advocacy groups are a part of the development of healthy engaged neighborhoods. There are a wide range of ways for which art can engage communities. The Art festival is a temporary approach with long lasting value. A one or two day can range from music festivals, performances, art fairs, participatory arts festivals, and so on. Focusing on a few examples of participatory and interactive arts festivals, and how they offer a multiple ways for communities to build strong social connections in communities. In Tom Borrup’s Book, The Creative Community Builder’s Handbook, he identifies four ways in which arts and

Each of these themes are easily connected to the types of interactions and involvement seen during interactive art festivals. In that even temporary art festivals are able to achieve these elements makes them good community builders.

In the past art has commonly been used as a mechanism to build engaged and socially aware neighborhoods. A study at the University of Pennsylvania conducted by Mark J. Stern has proven that small neighborhood community arts groups have a positive impact on school attendance, youth delinquency, neighborhood crime rates, civic engagement, and teen pregnancy. NOTE Museums are a booming art business that is mainly attracted towards tourism and does not make efforts to engage local communities. There for much of the community artist groups have been grass roots organizations which are small and expand based on growing interest of their communities. Contemporary artist have found many ways to expand out

From more open ended expressions of creativity to more specific responses to the cultural differences. Through this type of public interaction arts festivals help build cultural bonds between citizens building stronger communities and social environments. Participation can include the artist who submits and build an installation, but it also can refer to participants as anyone who attends and engages in such art festivals. Certain aspects of contemporary art, and the art that is encouraged at these types festivals, involve the participation and interaction of viewers to take part or be part of the art pieces. The art is not so much just to be looked at but more to be experienced and engaged. NOTE The removal of art from inside the museum to an outdoors public space further more encourages visitors to touch and interact in unknowingly making them participants of the works. In Creative Time’s Art on the Beach, the artists that participated were mostly established artist or up and coming artist. They were creating site specific installations as an urban response to the new land fill. NOTE At figment anyone can be an artist, all are welcome to participate. There is no fee to submit a proposal and anyone is welcome to submit. Since FIGMENT takes place in multiple cities it is visible to see how each city begins to have its own identity and that