More Art.
More Agency.
More Action.

More Art fosters collaborations between professional artists and communities to create thought-provoking public art and educational programs that inspire broad discourse regarding social and cultural issues.

Our core programs include:

Public Art Commissions

• One large scale project a year with an established artist. Includes community partnerships with other institutions and a series of contextualizing public programs.
• Plus one or two smaller projects per year with Engaging Artists program alumni or other emerging-to-established artists.

Engaging Artists

• Fellowship: Year-long fellowship for 8 artists/collectives. For emerging artists.
• Commission: $8k award and support for a public art project. For early career artists.

At the Table

• Series of conversations for small groups. In-person and virtual. 2-4 a year.

Through presenting public art to diverse communities, More Art ignites sparks for critically considering our society as a whole, and our place within it. Through accessible programming, artist talks, and a range of educational workshops surrounding each piece, More Art supplements viewers’ public art experience with a critical understanding of relevant social themes and art’s potential to serve as a communicative and expressive vehicle, often promoting positive change.

Public Art

We define public art as a process and/or method of exhibition in a public space (away from a traditional art environment such as a museum or gallery) that is accessible to a broad audience. The public art that More Art produces is always temporary and ephemeral.

For art to be truly public, it can’t be available just to those who generally have access to cultural institutions. If art is to truly inhabit the public sphere, it has to meet communities in geographic and social locations that bridge socio-economic, racial, and ethnic boundaries.

By producing museum quality projects and programs in parks and plazas as well as in spaces such as libraries and outer borough community centers, More Art ensures that commissioned artworks are made for, with, and seen by the public at large.

Socially Engaged Art

We define a socially engaged practice as involving the public in creating art to build power and agency among participants and strive towards equity and justice. The work places artists in dialogue with a group of individuals or non-art institutions, almost always outside of museum and traditional art institution walls. Socially engaged art challenges traditional ideas of art as static, aesthetic and symbolic, calling into question standard representations of what art is and can be. As an organization, we believe in producing projects that are experiential and highlight our shared humanity.

Taking art out of conventional spaces enables More Art to engage new audiences – people who often do not have access to high quality cultural programming. By doing so, we create an opportunity for our projects and programs to be accessed on a more capillary scale from people of all walks of life. Further, by commissioning work that grapples with larger societal issues, More Art facilitates constructive public debate.

More Art’s mission brings art to people in public spaces and, in the process, incites ideas, challenges preconceived notions, and inspires the minds of many.

To directly engage a diversity of communities, More Art partners with numerous grassroots organizations to organize and implement workshops, events, and interventions that provide a platform for new audiences to meaningfully engage with contemporary art. Past partner organizations include Hudson Guild; Greenwich House, Senior Center on the Square; Judson Memorial Church; Turning Point Brooklyn; Center for Family Life Brooklyn; The Fortune Society;  Center for Justice Innovation; and the Brooklyn Public Library, among many others. More Art also actively partners with public schools across New York City.

In addition, More Art works with municipal agencies such as the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation, the New York City Department of Education, The New York City Department of Transportation, as well as private institutions, and local businesses to present new works of public art.

Yes. We believe that in order to make public art truly public, it has to be accessible to everyone, regardless of economic circumstances.

More Art is based in New York City. We have presented public art projects in Manhattan, Queens, and Brooklyn. We have experimented with expanding our projects nationally and internationally, but we are primarily dedicated to working in NYC.

More Art collaborates with emerging, mid-career, and established artists across all media to produce vibrant, relevant, and topical works of socially-engaged public art.

As an arts organization, we give primacy to artists’ ideas, visions, and practices. As much as More Art’s commissions seek to deeply engage the larger public, provoke thoughtful conversations, and strive to promote social change, we believe that aesthetic considerations are crucial and a vital component of socially engaged art. The way that More Art collaborates with and supports artists is a key part of our work. Our small scale enables us to take risks and be responsive to the issues of the times, the needs of artists and communities, and the creative process.

Although we always welcome artists’ proposals, our public art projects are primarily by invitation only. We invite emerging, mid-career, and established artists to start a conversation with us, and ultimately submit a proposal. Projects are selected based on their artistic merit and relevance to contemporary dialogue about social justice and progressive change. Through extensive research with the community, project incubation, and sustained partnerships with local organizations, all projects effectively engage the community through public workshops, events, and panel discussions.

More Art’s Engaging Artists Fellowship and Commission Program, however, hosts an annual open call for emerging artists with a socially engaged practice. For more information on Engaging Artists, click here.

Engaging Artists provides an opportunity for emerging artists to immerse themselves in critical social issues through potential partnerships with community organizations. This is just another way that More Art engages the public with the arts like no other organization. The artists receive professional development through a intensives, monthly speaker series, periodical curatorial reviews, group presentations, and project support opportunities. For more information on Engaging Artists, click here.

We are always looking to establish new partnerships with schools and community organizations across NYC. Contact us at info@moreart.org for more information.