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OAKLAND, CA -
Recognizing that the arts are a significant, affirming and
transformational force in civic life, regional economies and
education, the cities of Berkeley, Emeryville, Oakland and
Richmond have come together in a nationally unprecedented
partnership to promote their arts in a new East Bay Culture
Corridor (EBCC). The EBCC will be formally launched October
2 with public events that run through the month in
celebration of the collaboration and a news conference at
which the Mayors of the participating cities will inaugurate
a new
510Arts.com website.
The EBCC launch is scheduled to coincide with the October 2
California Arts Day and National Arts & Humanities Month. In
addition to the participating cities, the EBCC is supported
by grants from the East Bay Community Foundation, The San
Francisco Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett
Foundation, the James Irvine Foundation and Leveraging
Investments in Creativity.
The four-city collaboration is believed to be the first of
its kind in the US and is designed to serve as a model of
forward-thinking, economically and socially viable
partnerships that put the arts forward as a proven catalyst
for economic development, quality of life and community
sustainability. The EBCC will foster relationships between
the diverse arts communities of each city, leverage new
audiences and resources for the arts, increase the
visibility, accessibility and sustainability of arts
communities, leverage new resources for each partner city
and benefit local businesses through partnerships with the
arts.
Together, the East Bay communities boast:
● One of the highest per capita artist populations in the
country.
● More than 150 languages spoken and many times that number
of culturally specific art forms practiced.
● One of the nation’s largest per capita collections of
public art.
● For decades East Bay communities have consistently ranked
at the top of national city diversity figures and their arts
reflect this depth and variety.
● Hundreds of non-profit visual arts, music, dance, theater,
multi-disciplinary and innovative organizations from the
internationally known to neighborhood programs, education
programs and offerings for youth, seniors and others, as
well.
● More than 1,000 professional artists call the East Bay
home.
Four Mayors See Arts Partnership as Good Business
“The East Bay is a region of widely diverse cultural
backgrounds,” state Tom Bates, Mayor of Berkeley; Richard
Kassis, Mayor of Emeryville; Ron Dellums, Mayor of Oakland;
and Gayle McLaughlin, Mayor of Richmond. “Our arts and
culture reflect the region’s demographics, boasting
individual artists, arts groups and organizations working in
a range of disciplines from a variety of cultural
perspectives. From individual artists working and teaching
in communities to nationally recognized theatres and
museums, the East Bay provides arts experiences that make
the area a regional cultural treasure. Our arts presence has
contributed to urban development, has a positive impact on
local businesses, and has the potential for creating more
viable and sustainable communities.
“The arts drive economies. As Americans for the Arts note in
their report Arts and Economic Prosperity III, investment in
the arts translates to economic impact on restaurants,
retail stores, hotels and other businesses frequented by
arts patrons. The average amount spent on such businesses by
local arts audiences is $27 above the price of admission to
the art event; cultural tourists from outside the area spend
an average of $19 to $40. Creating sustainable arts
communities is good business.
“In recognition of this, we have come together to state our
strong commitment to strengthening the regional economy
through creating the East Bay Cultural Corridor (EBCC). The
intention of the EBCC is to heighten awareness of our
cultural landscape, deepen the impact of the arts on their
cities, and further the sustainability of artists and arts
organizations through arts marketing, economic development
and cultural tourism.”
Collaboration Leverages Maximum Impact
Nicole Taylor, President & Chief Executive Officer of the
Foundation, said, “We at the East Bay Community Foundation
believe collaborations and partnerships are not merely
desirable, but are necessary in a world where limited
resources must be leveraged for maximum impact. Through this
collaboration we intend to throw a spotlight on the amazing
richness of arts resources in these four East Bay cities and
how fortunate we are that they come together here.”
Sandra R. Hernández, M.D., CEO of The San Francisco
Foundation commented, "The San Francisco Foundation is
honored to join forces with the East Bay Community
Foundation, our sister funders, and the cities of Berkeley,
Oakland, Emeryville, and Richmond, to lift up the importance
of arts and culture in the Bay Area. We look forward to the
diverse fruits of this creative partnership."
Launch of 510Arts.com Web Portal
The four mayors of the participating cities will come
together at a news conference on Friday, October 2, to
officially launch 510Arts.com, a new portal website designed
to provide centralized access to information and resources
about the arts in the East Bay to the public and artists.
The mayors will jointly “flip the switch” to activate the
web portal for public access. Offering “the 4-1-1 on world
arts and culture in the 5-1-0,” the site will feature
information about each city’s unique arts profile, details
of community-wide arts events, links to each city’s arts and
culture departments and more that will brand the East Bay to
a broad public as a multi-cultural and multi-dimensional
arts mecca for the greater Bay Area and beyond. The
510Arts.com site is being designed by Richmond resident and
graphics/web designer, Nicole Neditch at Objet d'Art design
in Oakland.
October Public Events Celebrate East Bay Arts Corridor
The participating cities have planned a variety of public
events for the October launch of the East Bay Culture
Corridor and 510Arts.com ranging from a civic center arts
exhibition and tours of a historic mural in Berkeley to one
of the country’s oldest and largest local arts exhibitions
and a new bus shelter art program in Emeryville to an arts
community party, gallery tours and demonstration of
innovative technology-based light installations in Oakland
to tours of the newly renovated and arts-rich Richmond Civic
Center. A list of October kick-off events may be found at
the end of this release.
Berkeley, Emeryville, Oakland and Richmond Arts Profiles
Berkeley
Berkeley’s thriving cultural scene is home to more than 130
non-profit arts organizations and hundreds more artists and
performers. It’s clear why Berkeley locals and visitors
“Come for the Culture, Stay for the Food” – the arts hold
equal pride of place with Berkeley ’s international
reputation as a center for culinary and educational
excellence.
Berkeley offers a comprehensive array of year-round cultural
attractions. The Downtown Berkeley Arts District is a
nationally recognized model as an arts destination and “arts
led” downtown revitalization. The Arts District is centered
on Addison Street ; once lined with auto body shops, Addison
Street now “rolls” with live theatre, live music, and
performing arts education space.
Creative spirit infuses Berkeley with everyday discoveries
ranging from vibrant street art and public art galleries, to
major events such as the Berkeley Artisan Holiday Open
Studios, and the renowned exhibitions and permanent
collections at UC Berkeley Art Museum/Pacific Film Archive.
Emeryville
Truly a City of the future, Emeryville boasts one of the
country’s most active artist live-work communities with
hundreds of visual and performing artists in residence year
round. The arts have been at the center of a decades-long
transformation of Emeryville into a city where locally made
culture vibrantly defines the fabric of its neighborhoods.
Among other events, the nationally recognized Emeryville
Celebration of the Arts, held every October, has for two
decades established the city as a progressive and diverse
center where business, the arts and quality of life come
together at the crossroads of sustainable urban development.
The city has a long-standing Percent for Arts program by
which real estate developers contribute toward public art.
In conjunction with the East Bay Culture Corridor’s launch
of 510Arts.com in October, the City of Emeryville will
inaugurate its Bus Shelter Public Art Program, bringing its
art and artists to residents and visitors.
Oakland
The Oakland renaissance is in full swing, weaving arts and
culture into the fabric of everyday life. Like its busy
international port, for generations Oakland has welcomed
artists and innovators from all over the world who have
established homes here, significantly invigorating the
cultural landscape and celebrating creative expression.
The most diverse city in the nation and gateway to the East
Bay, Oakland has always held the arts close to its heart,
with more than 300 arts groups, thousands of artists and
scores of passionate community arts patrons and advocates.
The city literally lights up with its arts from innovative
illuminated art installations to brightly shining historic
theater marquees, vibrant artisan street markets, edgy
industrial arts scene, annual festivals and performance
seasons. October kicks off with “Luminous Oakland,” an
ongoing program of innovative, eclectic temporary digital,
media and interdisciplinary public art projects together
with popular Art Murmur gallery openings on First Fridays.
Richmond
Richmond’s long-standing pride in its arts stands literally
at the center of the city in the form of visual and
performing arts centers that are nationally recognized as
models of a vibrant intersection of public/private
partnership. Its newly renovated Civic Center, emerging Arts
District, ambitious public art program and performing arts
groups welcome new artists and residents and are
inextricably aligned with business and neighborhoods.
Coupled with the Ford Point Craneway’s new entertainment
venue hot-spot on the Bay, Richmond is revealing a vibrant
new image.
One of the last bastions of affordable artist live-work
space in the Bay Area, Richmond is experiencing rapid growth
in its already active artist population. The arts played a
leading role in the comprehensive renovation of the city’s
Memorial Civic Center, setting the stage for an even more
heightened presence for the cultural life that is at the
heart of the city. The Richmond Art Center has helped launch
the international careers of many artists, and the East Bay
Center for the Performing Arts has put many residents both
young and old on life-long paths enriched by music, theater
and dance. |
