Sixteen Londonderry elementary students carefully constructed decorative clay tiles last month under the watchful eye of Teresa Taylor, owner of Salty Dog Pottery in Barnstead, using rolling coils, slabs and cutting tools to design a tile that was unique to their interests.
“It’s a lot of fun for me to share my love of clay with students,” said Taylor, who fired the tiles in her kiln after the workshop and who will return this week to paint them with the children. After a second firing at Salty Dog Pottery, the tiles will be ready for the students, participants in the Granite YMCA afterschool program at South Elementary School in Londonderry, to gift their art during the holidays.
“The kids thoroughly enjoyed it,” said Lisa Bernard, Granite YMCA’s regional director of strategies and partnerships. “The project itself exceeded the expectations and the artist was just so professional.”
The workshop was the first event sponsored by Open Arts United, a new Manchester-based nonprofit that seeks to increase access to the arts in underrepresented communities throughout New Hampshire and eventually around the country.
National research shows that artistic communities are often not representative of the diversity of the country. A 2017 report by Americans for the Arts found that people involved with local arts organizations generally have more education and higher income than the general population. People of color, individuals with disabilities, LGBTQ people and other marginalized groups are often underrepresented, the report found.
“It’s really the privileged white America that really attends most of the cultural events in our country,” said Howard Brodsky, founder and chairman of the board at Open Arts United. That statement is backed up by research from the National Endowment of the Arts, which found that whites are more likely to attend local arts events than people of other races and ethnicities.
“Our country is a diverse country, and the goal is how do we connect diverse and underrepresented communities with transformative art experiences?” Brodsky said.
He hopes Open Arts United will engage refugees, recent immigrants, rural residents, and people across the socio-economic and racial spectrum. Diversity means “all of that,” he said.
Participating in the arts can improve social ties and promote healing from trauma, according to the National Endowment for the Arts, so being able to see performances and interact with artists is important, said Jada Hebra, chief diversity and inclusion officer at Southern New Hampshire University, and board member at Open Arts United.
“Access is key to equity and social justice,”she said. “It’s an equity issue. For me, it’s a social justice issue. Not being able to access the arts is a form of social injustice that needs to be remedied.”
In order to do that, Open Arts United has partnered with community organizations like the YMCA and the Boys and Girls Club that are already serving underrepresented communities. On Dec. 1, Open Arts United hosted a puppet show at the Boys & Girls Club of Manchester. The production was by Jonathan Edward Cross, an educator at the Concord Community Music School who performs under the stage name Jonny Clockworks.
For a long time, the YMCA has been hoping to bring more arts programming to all members, said Bernard, but finding artists to participate has been challenging. She sees Open Arts United as a solution.
“Having Open Arts as a resource to connect us with creatives is going to make that possible,” she said.
Theo Martey, New Hampshire’s artist laureate, said that Open Arts United will benefit artists, giving them direct access to their communities.
“What I hope for the program is to channel all artists in the community and give them the platform they need to share their work,” said Marty, a musician who serves on the board of the nonprofit.
To get local residents directly involved in supporting its events, Open Arts United fundraises using GoFundMe. The monies help the organization guarantee artists a fair wage. The November tile workshop had a $600 fundraising goal and so far has raised $365 from the community, according to the crowdfunding site, although the effort is ongoing until the second portion of the tile workshop. The puppet show had a $1,500 goal and raised $665.
Donors will receive pictures and videos from the events “to show them the impact of their investment,” Brodsky said.
“Small amounts of money can make a huge amount of impact,” he said.
Although the first two events focused on children, Open Arts United plans to serve people of all ages. Bernard has spoken with the organization about doing an activity for seniors, and another tile project to incorporate into a local YMCA building. She’s brainstorming an intergenerational project between older adults and preschoolers.
“The opportunities are endless,” she said.
So too are the possible impacts, Brodsky said.
“We’re trying to harness the potential of the arts to address a lot of social issues and contribute to the well-being of the communities,” he said. “The arts have the potential to really dynamically change peoples lives.”
These articles are being shared by partners in The Granite State News Collaborative. For more information visit collaborativenh.org.
