Last week the Arts for LA board adopted a new strategic plan for 2017-2022. As we developed the plan, our fabulous committee (members listed below) helped us revise our mission, which now reads:

Arts for LA activates artists and organizations, and leads communities to advocate for an equitable, healthy, creative Los Angeles Region.

This week we launched our partnership with Amnesty International and the Arts for Incarcerated Youth with my public comment at the Board of Supervisors meeting on Tuesday when they declared December "Human Rights Month" in LA County. On Wednesday, we helped unveil a new mural at Central Juvenile Hall created by resilient young people, reminding me that art does save lives.

In 2017 Arts for LA will fight to eliminate barriers to equity, access, and inclusion in the arts, so that all of Los Angeles will thrive. This is how cities become more just, vibrant, and prosperous.

I hope you'll stand with us as we enter 2017 and fight for the best in all of us. 

My best,

Sofia Klatzker
Executive Director

Arts for LA Recognized for Art for Rights, December 7-11

In proclaiming December 2016 as "Human Rights Month," the LA County Board of Supervisors recognized Arts for LA for its participation in Art for Rights, a collaboration among Arts for LA, Art For Amnesty, The Underground Museum, Arts For Incarcerated Youth Network and more than 15 visual artists to highlight the stories of 12 international Human Rights cases through art and creative installations.

Presented by Arts for LA in partnership with Art for Amnesty, Art For Rights, hosted in the world famous Container Yard in Downtown Los Angeles, will see the creation of 12 original murals, the curation of a provocative installation on the current refugee crisis, a high profile visual arts competition hosted by Secret Walls, and a series of curated discussions around human rights and the arts. We invite you to engage with the art, learn about our human rights work & take action. The goal: harness the creative power of the arts to inspire 10,000 actions on behalf of Write for Rights. Art For Rights is free of charge.

ACTIVATE Concludes Fall Season with a Day of Leadership

On December 3, ACTIVATE completed its fall trainings with an all-day intensive joint session with the Arts Education and Cultural Policy cohorts.  Held at the Los Feliz Charter School for the Arts, the day featured a series of seminars on leadership, communications, coalition building, and harnessing culture as a catalyst for social change. 

Janet McIntyre led the group through a workshop on "adaptive leadership" in which each fellow identified their 5 strengths as a leader. Charlie Jensen offered a communication workshop, "Brainwashing for Good," aka "How To Convince Anyone To Support the Arts."  

Community organizers Anna Cho Fenley (Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice) and Jade Daniels (#BlackLivesMatter, LA chapter) shared their experience of mobilizing a movement & the value of coalition building (right, with moderator Cristina Pacheco).  Yosi Sergant of Taskforce PR illustrated how to harness popular culture to achieve social justice: ""Culture is both the agent of change and the object of change." 

ACTIVATE will resume in January with a workshop on developing their spring advocacy projects in 18 cities and 16 school districts. 

Garrett Leight & Michael Brunswick Project To Benefit Arts for LA

Garrett Leight California Optical (GLCO) has partnered with Venice-based artist Michael Brunswick to collaborate on a limited edition lens, with proceeds to benefit Arts for LA. Limited to 100 pairs, these lenses come with complimentary cutting and installation with any GLCO frame. 

Join GLCO for the launch party this Friday, December 9.   Free & open to the public.

Date: Friday, December 9, 2016

Time: 7-10pm

Place: 1522 Abbott Kinney Blvd. Venice CA 90291 

Find out more about the project. 

Help Arts for LA Raise $30,000 by Dec 31

On Giving Tuesday, Arts for LA launched a campaign to raise $30,000 to prepare for what 2017 will bring. Between now and December 31, any donation to Arts for LA will be matched by the Herb Alpert Foundation and Arts for LA's Board of Directors, up to $15,000.

Now is the moment to give - to double the impact of your gift.

Many thanks to the following who have contributed so far, helping us to raise $1,135 which has been matched for a total of $2,270: 

Leni Boorstin, Alina Borja, Jeanne Hoel, Evelyn Horigan, D.W. Jacobs, Charlie Jensen, Jona Jones, Steve & Katherine Klatzker, Courtney Robertson, Kristen Strayhorn, Floyd Vasquez, and Suzanne Weerts.

Thank You to Our Strategic Planning Committee!

Many thanks to the following individuals who participated in our Strategic Planning process, which was underwritten by the Devos Institute of Arts Management, University of Maryland:

Arts for LA's Board of Directors as well as:

Sonny Calderon
Amanda Carlson
Jessica Cusick
Asuka Hisa
Leslie Ishii
Melody Kanschat
Terence McFarland
Winifred Neisser
Cristina Pacheco
Debra J.T. Padilla
James W. Schultz

The Devos team was captained by Brett Egan (pictured, right, with Sofia Klatzker) and shepherded by Diana Norton and Lucy Pope.