ABC: it started as just an idea...
Art Builds Community (ABC) began in the spring of 2004 under the name, The Jamaica Plain Youth Mural Program (JPYMP). At the time I was teaching art in a high school in Roxbury called Community Academy -a school for teens who are thrown out of other Boston public high schools until they are given another placement, or thrown out of the system altogether.
I saw youth in my classes who were talented and passionate about art, but who were not getting the support or opportunities they needed to follow the path of an artist. One particular student was an incredible draftsman. He could draw beautifully! He was 19, had just been thrown out of his house, and came to school only a few times a month because he was working full time to pay rent. After he showed me his amazing portfolio I learned that he had been given an F in art at the high school he had been attending. This was one of the best teen artists I had ever seen and he was getting F’s in art, working full time, and unable to go to school. At this time, I realized that I was in a position to help young people. He needed a job that would pay him to make art...
That spring JPYMP was born. The walls were found, and little by little, with much pounding of pavement, support for the program bubbled up. (I came to know many more people in JP than I ever imagined!) In the summer of 2004, JPYMP employed 5 youth and painted 3 murals – 2 in JP and one in Dorchester. The mural in Dorchester was the first in a series of collaborative murals with the Cape Verdean Community Unido (CVC Unido).
Gaining steam in 2005, JPYMP painted another 3 murals, building it's organizational strength on making warm and effective partnerships with community organizations and businesses in JP and Boston. We had the generous help of 4 volunteers who worked on everything from fundraising to publicity, to painting and teaching.
As we aimed to grow city-wide in 2006, JPYMP changed its name to the less geographically focused Art Builds Community. Anyahlee Suderman came aboard as Lead Artist and Program Director while I traveled to Africa for the summer working on a mural project in Nairobi, Kenya.
Recognizing our power for creativity, youth, and togetherness, ABC brought new partnerships and programs into its curriculum and structure. A new partnership with Cloud Place enabled us to host weekly Visiting Artist workshops where youth were exposed to the ideas and techniques of several of Boston’s leading artists through discussions and hands-on studio time.
A few of our Visiting Artists were Bren Bataclan of the Smile Project, Unyted Stylz dance troupe, Jason Talbot and Quyen Truong of Artists for Humanity and Kathleen Bitetti of the Artists Foundation. Partnerships with MassArt and Harvard University brought us to create the backdrops for a collaborative youth performance at Sanders Theatre/Memorial Hall. Additionally, ABC took on a paid intern from MassArt, Rashin Fahandej, Lead Artist Assistant. And the collaboration with the Cape Verdean Community Unido continued. In 2006, ABC youth worked with CVC Unido youth to create a 75’ Peace Mural. Mayor Tom Menino and Tina Chery of the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute spoke at the unveiling of the mural to a large group of community members and leaders.
A rapidly growing organization, ABC takes pride in standing for creativity, youth, and community. These are three things without which no civilization can ever succeed. But nurturing, adoring, and working for these ideals, our lives become enriched, uplifted, and preserved.
-Alex Cook, ABC Founder
