Stronger neighborhoods through arts and culture
More than sixty people enjoyed perfect weather at the Arches on Saturday as Virginia Children’s Theatre presented the book MIXED by Arree Chung.
Get a glimpse of what the day was like in this two-minute recap video.
Next Up: Whoever You Are by Mem Fox
Saturday, September 12 at 11 AM
Check out these pictures from artist Polly Branch, plus a WDBJ News piece on progress at the Arches!
Revisit project goals in this quick video.
Step back in time with this earlier video when we applied for grant funding.
Wow! Are things progressing at the Arches. Check out these pictures! Footer pictures by Rachel Kuehl.
Dan Kuehl with the progress.
Polly Branch and John Tanner at work.
There’s been progress at the Arches site and more planning is afoot.
(A refresher: We’re doing some creative placemaking, guided by neighborhood goals, led by local artists, and funded by the NEA and the City of Roanoke. Want an overview? Watch a short presentation here.)
Here’s the update:
Mike Allen interviewed the Arches artists for The Roanoke Times in the Friday, July 2 issue of the newspaper.
Polly Branch and Daniel Kuehl have begun work on their respective projects, staging materials and cleaning the footers. As soon as debris is removed from the sandbox, Polly will begin work. Dan will rally students from Patrick Henry High School not long after the Independence Day holiday.
Check for progress as you take you strolls along the greenway, and mark you calendar for the four children story hours by Virginia Children’s Theatre — every Saturday in September at 11 AM.
Watch a short video about the project goals.
Here are some images of progress from the site to date:
In three community planning meetings, a group of more than thirty community members and artists helped developed a call for proposals for the Arches project. The City of Roanoke Arts Commission is excited about this community-driven process. We can’t wait to see what projects artist teams put forward to create a stronger place on the greenway under the magnificent arches of Memorial Bridge.
Goals include the creation of a gathering space that attracts and celebrates the diversity of our community though a participatory art project. The project might be one big installation or a combination of several components.
Creative teams and neighbors, come on out — July 10th at 5:30 PM to Mountain View Recreation Center for our final session on creative placemaking. This will be the last session and the announcement of the call for proposals. Here’s our agenda:
The RFP will be due on July 29th.
Outreach tools and meeting notes:
Thanks to the thirty folks who attended our kickoff for the ARCHES project on May 29.
We’ll see everyone again on:
In the meantime, here are tools for getting the word out. This is an inclusive and welcoming neighborhood project. Spread the word!
Some under-bridge examples from around the country…
Join us on May 29th at 5 PM for the kick off of a new community based approach to public art and stronger neighborhoods. Our pilot project will be at the intersection of four neighborhoods and the Roanoke River Greenway.
Mountain View Rec. Center
714 13th Street, SW
We’ll visit the site under the Memorial Bridge arches, tell stories, and brainstorm potential projects. Bring your neighbors from Norwich, Mountain View, Wasena, and Raleigh Court as we learn together about each other, and our community, and together work to make it even better.
ARCHES 