The West Harlem Art Fund (WHAF) will increase access to the “arts” for West Harlem and NYC residents by developing light based and digitally based art works. These works will be shared through their new digi-theater platform and outdoor intervention series. According to Executive Director Savona Bailey-McClain, “In order to better engage local residents with the fine arts, producers must use interactive modes of communications and entertainment. It is the present and our future.”
Building on their 2014 intervention series Under the Viaduct, which included a mix with dance, graffiti, digital and sound art, the organization is partnering with CultureHub to create large scale digital projections along the Hudson River in West Harlem and Washington Heights. They hope this platform will reach hundreds of individuals both online and with live performances. The impact of their intervention was sizeable last year.
CultureHub, which is based in the East Village hosts a residency program with Korean artists from Seoul. Tomorrow this group will visit the Hispanic Society of America to view their collection and develop content for the projections that will be shown in June. The West Harlem Development Corporation made funding for this creative collaboration produced by the West Harlem Art Fund, possible.
About CultureHub
CultureHub is an incubator for creativity focused on the intersection of art and technology. We connect artists from diverse disciplines and cultures and provide them with environments in which to collaborate, experiment and explore. We serve local and global communities by providing an open space for creative research, artistic exchange and learning. Founded in 2009 by the Seoul Institute of the Arts in Korea and La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club in New York City, CultureHub currently consists of four telepresence partnerships:
Seoul Institute of the Arts (Seoul/Korea)
La MaMa Experimental Theater Club (New York City/USA)
CalArts (Los Angeles/USA)
Contact Theatre (Manchester/UK)
WEST HARLEM ART FUND 