https://www.theplywoodproject.com/initiatives daily 0.75 2020-07-19 https://www.theplywoodproject.com/initiatives/project-two-hmc2g monthly 0.5 2019-08-22 https://www.theplywoodproject.com/initiatives/project-four-s9j35 monthly 0.5 2019-08-22 https://www.theplywoodproject.com/initiatives/project-three-x55ft monthly 0.5 2019-08-22 https://www.theplywoodproject.com/initiatives/project-one-y26d6 monthly 0.5 2019-08-22 https://www.theplywoodproject.com/about daily 0.75 2020-06-20 https://www.theplywoodproject.com/home daily 1.0 2021-09-25 https://www.theplywoodproject.com/vision daily 0.75 2020-07-20 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5eee58efeaa57e78d7b34f85/t/5eee5fda681de65c1f86d775/1592681916505/BlackLivesMatter-2-3.jpg Vision - IMAGINE IF: The plywood that has sprung up on boarded storefronts is transformed into an enormous experimental outdoor art exhibit of commissioned new work and preserved street art, flooding our communities - and via the media, the world - with images of beauty, resistance, and hope. Black and Brown artists, who have historically been underrepresented and marginalized in the art world, have a massive platform to raise their voices, display their talent, and receive financial support. As the plywood comes down, the art grows, as businesses feature art on and in their stores (on any material - plywood, glass, digital screens etc.) to show the public not only the goods they sell, but also the values they aspire and commit to. Youth are provided mentoring opportunities by artists, providing enrichment at a time of acute educational challenges wrought by the pandemic. Art organizations model collaboration and unity, to help each other weather the huge crisis each now faces and to provide the public an outdoor art experience offering the advantage of greater safety as Covid-19 measures remain in place. The business community, nonprofits, and public sector join forces to take action to help the communities most deeply impacted by our current crises - providing funding, space, in-kind donations, promotion, and opportunities for long-term positive impact. https://www.theplywoodproject.com/why-plywood daily 0.75 2020-08-22 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5eee58efeaa57e78d7b34f85/t/5eee66842e52364583a4e3bc/1598110487840/Art+Work+Sophia+Dawson Why Plywood In Spring 2020, New York City suddenly resembled a war zone, rather than the cultural and economic capital is it known to be. With recent civic uprisings triggered not only by the murder of George Floyd and countless other Black and Brown people, but also by a pandemic that disproportionately impacts communities of color, these boarded up storefronts have sent a message of fear and withdrawal to a shell-shocked city. Now is the time for art to step into the breach and re-imagine these surfaces as transformational canvases to model a creative response to crisis, instigate dialogue, and initiate the healing of our city. But plywood is just the beginning. Plywood, while a modest material, is a rich symbol of protection from impending disaster - evoking everything from NYC’s crisis years of the 1970s to Hurricane Katrina to shantytowns worldwide, and also represents resilience and strength. As our city begins to reopen and cautiously emerges from one of the greatest traumas in its history, art - on plywood and other surfaces, on private storefronts and in public spaces - can be a vehicle towards our recovery. This project can have lasting transformational impact well after the plywood comes down. While plywood is the metaphoric tinder, artworks can grow on surfaces of all kinds. And the artworks created for The Plywood Project can be made into prints, posters, publications, performances, and exhibitions that commemorate this historic moment, and contribute to the movement it represents. https://www.theplywoodproject.com/what-plywood-is daily 0.75 2020-07-20 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5eee58efeaa57e78d7b34f85/t/5eef752b645a193de9f76202/1592935327500/BlackLivesMatter-1-2.jpg What Plywood Is Is an innovative consortium of partners - including nonprofit art organizations, private businesses, municipal government, and creative workers - to empower artists and communities of color most affected by our triple crises we now face: Covid-19, economic downturn, and racial injustice. Recognizes this moment as a movement, creating a legacy of art-making with lasting impact. Can grow to include performing arts and broader collaborations, building on the metaphorical power of plywood. Models public-private collaboration to inspire other cities around the country and the world, deploying art and culture in a journey towards rebirth and renewal. Asks all of us to transform this crisis into an opportunity to offer cultural justice as part of the imperative of social justice. https://www.theplywoodproject.com/why-support-us daily 0.75 2020-08-22 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5eee58efeaa57e78d7b34f85/t/5eef75c7b12bbf214bd817cc/1598109890471/Art+Work+Sophia+Dawson Why Support Us We need to heal and unify. The transformative power of art is uniquely able to do so - by providing the balm of beauty and the gift of dialogue, and by asking us to truly see each other through shared experience. Artists - and especially artists of color - need financial support now, and a platform for their work. The artworks can be preserved and leveraged (with prints, posters, exhibitions, and publications) to provide an income stream and lasting legacy well after the plywood comes down. Art organizations - particularly those in and serving communities of color - are currently challenged to provide programming that serves their community. This project offers such programming with multiple opportunities to leverage the project with additional digital resources. Because this project is all outdoors, it can be executed and experienced safely under ongoing Covid-19 restrictions, allowing makers the ability to create art, and the public to experience art, at a time when doing so indoors is limited and risky. The student/youth component provides much needed socialized “brick and mortar” activities and mentoring for kids who have labored in isolation, on screens, for months. NYC (like other cities) needs to show its unequivocal support for Black and Brown communities, whose voices are amplified by The Plywood Project. The Plywood Project puts art, creativity, and collaboration at the center of today’s civic discourse. https://www.theplywoodproject.com/partners daily 0.75 2022-01-03 https://www.theplywoodproject.com/what-plywood-is-1 daily 0.75 2020-06-23 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5eee58efeaa57e78d7b34f85/t/5ef246260be3f05582998f9f/1592936002463/BlackLivesMatter-3.jpg Timeline While this moment is part of a much bigger movement, The Plywood Project aims to act fast. Grass roots artworks are already popping up throughout the city on boarded up shops, as artists paint some of these surfaces guerilla-style. The Plywood Project builds on this energy, organizing key stakeholders in the city to focus attention and resources on artists and communities most directly impacted by our current crises, capture the public imagination, and inspire necessary conversations. Even as plywood comes down from major retailers, The Plywood Project can grow to include surfaces of all kinds, as plywood is but the inspiration. While some businesses may choose to keep literal plywood up (transformed by art), any surface can be a canvas. The big idea of The Plywood Project is transformation through art, which creates essential dialogue. As The Plywood Project grows, it can include prints, posters, and publications to preserve the legacy of (and create income from) this historic series of artworks. The Plywood Project’s impact can be amplified by museum exhibitions and performances at Plywood Project sites. A phased approach can remain nimble to scale up and evolve in a fluid situation. Proposed phases are: Pilot (June-July): First artwork "proof of concept” Phase 1 (July-August): 5 (or more) artworks i.e. one in each borough, or a concentrated amount in one neighborhood (exact # pending funding/space availability) Phase 2: (August-September): Scale up as additional funders/spaces join Phase 3: (beyond Summer 2020): ongoing growth of sites/artworks plus print editions, posters, museum exhibition(s), performances, publications https://www.theplywoodproject.com/contact-us daily 0.75 2020-07-20 https://www.theplywoodproject.com/in-the-news daily 0.75 2020-08-21 https://www.theplywoodproject.com/gallery daily 0.75 2020-08-22 https://www.theplywoodproject.com/gallery/project-one-bfsa3 monthly 0.5 2022-01-03 https://www.theplywoodproject.com/gallery/sugar-hill-august-2020 monthly 0.5 2020-10-12