SAN DIEGO–A Reason to Survive (ARTS) will add two new sites to its Market Makeovers series to address food insecurity in south San Diego during COVID-19.
Through grant funding from the National Endowment for the Arts and the City of National City, ARTS youth will beautify and transform local market places into more welcoming establishments that foster healthy living.
“Creative youth development is fundamentally about empowering young people to use the arts to express their voices, stories, and visions for the world they want to live in,” says James Halliday, executive director of ARTS. “Food insecurity and other community health inequities are on the rise and disproportionately affect the life trajectories of young people in San Diego’s South Bay. These market makeovers are an opportunity for ARTS youth to exert their creative abilities, and address urgent and timely injustices that directly impact them.”
Through the Market Makeovers series, local youth and teaching artists will host community design meetings, then develop artistic installations that enhance the appearance and accessibility of fresh fruits and vegetables to the general public. The series is part of the organization’s Community ARTS programming, which creates public art to advance the community, while helping young people develop collaboration and critical thinking skills. ARTS plans to revitalize 50 public spaces in National City by 2021.
“These awards demonstrate the resilience of the arts in America, showcasing not only the creativity of their arts projects but the organizations’ agility in the face of a national health crisis,” says Mary Anne Carter, chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts. “We celebrate organizations like ARTS for providing opportunities for learning and engagement through the arts in these times.”
National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Mary Anne Carter has approved more than $84 million in grants as part of the Arts Endowment’s second major funding announcement for fiscal year 2020. Included in this announcement is an Our Town award of $25,000 to ARTS for the Market Makeovers. That grant was matched by $25,000 from the City of National City.
