NYC Department of Cultural Affairs

Meet this year's Lillian Wald Symposium panelists! Next Wednesday, April 9, they will discuss whether our city can remain an incubator for creativity at a time when affordable space and access to resources continue to shrink, moderated by Valentina Di Liscia, news editor for Hyperallergic. – Maura Cuffie-Peterson is a facilitator, strategist, and designer. Currently, she serves as the director of strategic initiatives for the Guaranteed Income program at Creatives Rebuild New York. – Anne del Castillo is senior policy advisor for creative sector strategy for NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, where she oversees the development and administration of NYC Create in Place, a new citywide initiative to safeguard the city’s cultural and creative infrastructure. – Nile Harris is a performer and director of live art. He has done a few things and hopes to do a few more, God willing. – Sharon Zukin is professor emerita of sociology and of earth and environmental sciences at Brooklyn College and the CUNY Graduate Center, and writes extensively about art, architecture, and real estate in New York City. – Ashley Ferro-Murray, Ph.D., is the program director for the arts at the Doris Duke Foundation, where she drives and oversees grantmaking and other efforts to advance the foundation’s support for performing artists. The symposium is free and open to the public, but you must RSVP. ADA seating and live ASL interpretation provided. Get your ticket now at HenryStreet.org/Symposium #Symposium #Artists #NYC

📢 NYC cultural nonprofits: it's time to apply for the next cycle of the Cultural Development Fund (CDF)! Open to eligible non-profit arts and cultural organizations, the CDF is the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs' annual grantmaking process that supports a broad, multidisciplinary group of diverse non-profit cultural organizations for their public programming. Each year the CDF receives hundreds of applications for programmatic funding from groups working across the five boroughs, and convenes peer panels of individuals with expertise in NYC’s cultural community to review all eligible applications. This public support for cultural activity is intended to reach New Yorkers in every corner of the city, so eligible groups are encouraged to apply. Potential applicants are encouraged to attend a CDF application webinar, four of which will be offered on the following dates: Wednesday, April 9, 10:30am Monday, April 14, 6pm Thursday, April 24, 3pm Thursday, May 1, 12:30pm The Fiscal Year 26 CDF application deadline is Thursday, May 8, 2025, at 5pm. Learn more about eligibility, guidelines, webinar dates, and more at nyc.gov/CDFapply.

We were thrilled to induct Jaye Moon, JT Rogers, Cristina Enriquez-Bocobo (Makeable), and Commissioner Laurie Cumbo (NYC Department of Cultural Affairs) into NYFA's Hall of Fame last night in Manhattan! Thanks to those who joined us and to folks who bid on items in our art auction! Established in 2011 as NYFA’s most significant fundraiser, the benefit is a tribute to the spirit of creativity and dedication that embodies NYFA’s mission. Surrounded by great art and people with a true passion for the arts, it was a night to remember. Please join us in congratulating Jaye, JT, Cristina, and Commissioner Cumbo! 👉Read our recap here: https://ow.ly/LNHY50VkZn6

Don't leave fiscal sponsorship leave you scratching your head! 🤔 Join #NYCreateInPlace on Thursday, March 27 at 12:00pm for “Creative Fiscal Sponsorship Models,” a webinar presented by Social Impact Commons discussing the latest practices and trends in fiscal sponsorship, as well as management commons—a new approach to nonprofit resource sharing that centers equity and justice. Whether you’re a fiscal sponsor or sponsored project, this presentation will offer valuable insight on both of these models and how they can support the work of individual artists, collectives, and established arts organizations alike. Our NYC Create in Place pilot program provides centralized support focused on preserving, accessing, and expanding creative spaces for the city’s cultural organizations and creative businesses. Launched in January 2025, this series of technical assistance webinars is one of the program’s strategies designed to support the city’s cultural sector. Register for the upcoming webinar here: https://lnkd.in/ekg4Xmf2. Access: The meeting platform (Zoom) is accessible by screen-reader, and participants may join by phone or computer/online. For further information or to request an accommodation, please email DisabilityFacilitator@culture.nyc.gov or call (212) 298-8779. Requests for accommodation should be made by Monday, March 24 or as soon as possible thereafter. A recording of this webinar will be uploaded to the agency’s YouTube channel. #NYCulture #NYCreateInPlace #NYC

We are delighted to welcome Audrey St.Clair as DCLA’s new Assistant Commissioner for Program Services!! In this role, Audrey will oversee the unit that administers the Cultural Development Fund (CDF), which distributes city support to more than 1,000 cultural organizations across the city each year.     Audrey comes to DCLA from the NYC Department of Education's Arts Office, where she served as Director of Arts Partnerships. In this capacity, she developed robust partnerships between hundreds of arts and cultural organizations and the 1,600 public schools in New York City. She oversaw all aspects of Arts Partnerships Grants and co-facilitated the Support for Arts Instruction Initiative in collaboration with the New York City Arts in Education Roundtable and New York City Council. Before being promoted to Director of Arts Partnerships, Audrey served as the Arts Coordinator for the Office of Arts and Special Projects where she co-facilitated the organization and planning of the Chancellor’s Strategic Arts Plan.    Prior to her work in the Department of Education, Audrey worked as the Teachers College Community School (TCCS) Liaison at Teachers College, Columbia University. As TCCS Liaison, she collaborated with community-based organizations, cultural institutions and higher education to direct STEAM programs for children and families in grades Pre-K thru 6th grade.    A graduate of Spelman College and an alumni of Sphinx LEAD, Audrey is an arts advocate and administrator that has created sustainable arts programs for children, families and communities.    We also want to give a big DCLA shout out to the Programs Unit, which has continued to serve and deliver for our cultural community over the last year, including through the recent announcement of this year’s CDF. The passion, dedication, and commitment of these public servants are unmatched, and we’re grateful for their continued leadership and dedication to working for our city’s remarkable cultural community.     Please join us in welcoming Audrey to the team!      📷: Joshua Dwain Photography

Today, we announced a record-breaking $59.3 million in grants for 1,078 cultural organizations across New York City, distributed through our annual Cultural Development Fund (CDF). The funding — which is awarded annually by Cultural Affairs using a competitive, peer-evaluated grant process — includes $51.9 million from the New York City Mayor’s Office and $7.4 million from members of the New York City Council. The CDF supports a broad range of artistic, cultural, and historic organizations across New York City, helping support good-paying jobs and strengthening the city’s flourishing cultural sector. “This year, we’re rolling out new reforms that will expand investments in low-income communities, we’re bringing back city support for cultural programming that break down barriers to access, we’re increasing support for individual artists, we’re offering greater stability to the groups who rely on our funding to deliver cultural programs for New Yorkers — and we’re doing it all with a record investment from the city, thanks to Mayor Adams and our partners on the City Council. Congratulations to all of this year’s CDF recipients!” – NYC Cultural Affairs Commissioner Laurie Cumbo Learn more at nyc.gov/culture.

"'Make no mistake, the L10 Arts and Cultural Center is a really big deal,' said New York City Department of Cultural Affairs Commissioner Laurie Cumbo at the Jan. 28 ribbon-cutting. 'This amazing new facility has been worked toward and dreamed of by the people who made it a reality for a very long time.'" We're so proud of our yearslong collaboration with 651 ARTS, MoCADA - Museum of Contemporary African Diasporan Art, Brooklyn Academy of Music, and Brooklyn Public Library, and the New York City Economic Development Corporation to make the extraordinary new L10 Art and Cultural Center a reality! 65,000 square feet of new cultural space in the heart of Downtown Brooklyn created with an $84 million city investment - this remarkable new facility will pay dividends for New Yorkers for generations to come. Culture strengthens our communities, drives our communities, creates good paying jobs, and gives New York and energy like nowhere else in the world. Read more in Brooklyn Paper: https://lnkd.in/eDV3CeWj

Last week, our NYC Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA) Public Artist-in-Residence (PAIR), Singha Hon, hosted her first internal workshop with NYC Mayor's Office of Equity & Racial Justice staffers. In celebration of Lunar New Year, Singha guided us in creating Lunar New Year decorations that symbolize good fortune and ward off bad luck for the year ahead. 🌙🧧 It’s always a joy to see how art brings us together and connects us to cultural traditions! #LunarNewYear #CulturalArt #PublicArt #GoodFortune #CommunityBuilding #ArtInTheWorkplace #NYC

Arts and cultural organizations: get ready to soar like a legal eagle with our NYC Create in Place three-part webinar series! 🦅 Presented in partnership with Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts, New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, and Lawyers Alliance for New York, these sessions will offer the operators of our city’s cultural spaces expert legal advice on managing and securing the spaces essential to your work. This legal series will kick off NYC Create in Place technical assistance programs, which will offer resources to cultural organizations focused on preserving, accessing, and expanding creative spaces across the five boroughs. With the affordability crisis and a host of other challenges threatening the cultural vitality of our city, Create in Place will connect cultural spaces to the support and resources they need to remain a part of their communities. The Creative Spaces 101 Legal Series will offer the following webinars: ✅ Independent Contractors in Creative Spaces Thursday, January 16, 2025 | 12:00–1:00 PM ✅ Creative Spaces and Commercial Leases Thursday, January 23, 2025 | 12:00–1:00 PM ✅ Becoming a Nonprofit: Incorporation and Tax Exemption Thursday, January 30, 2025 | 12:00–1:00 PM Click here to learn more and RSVP for individual sessions: https://lnkd.in/edb8eF3v. Access: The meeting platform (Zoom) is accessible by screen-reader, and participants may join by phone or computer/online. For further information or to request an accommodation, please email DisabilityFacilitator@culture.nyc.gov or call (212) 298-8779. Webinars will be recorded and made available on the NYC Create in Place website. #NYCulture #NYCreateInPlace #NYC

NYC's community-based cultural and community spaces are the heart and soul of our city's neighborhoods. We want to help them stay that way even in the face of rising prices and other challenges these essential places are facing. So we're excited new city program designed to aid the city's essential, at-risk cultural and creative spaces: NYC Create in Place. NYC Create in Place is a pilot program that provides centralized support focused on preserving, accessing, and expanding creative spaces for the city’s cultural organizations and creative businesses. Responding to rising costs, difficulty accessing government resources, and challenges in navigating real estate opportunities, NYC Create in Place will provide support through a new web portal launched today, serving as a one-stop-shop for cultural organizations and creative business to access resources and support online. The Interagency Create in Place Task Force, led by the Department of Cultural Affairs, will help creative entities address space issues, navigate city resources, and foster long-term sustainable solutions that will help preserve equitable, accessible spaces that strengthen community vitality and neighborhood character for cultural organizations and creative businesses across all five boroughs. “From small theaters to galleries, bookshops, and everything in between, our city’s community-based cultural and creative spaces mean so much to New Yorkers - they provide places to connect, they drive local economies, and they give our neighborhoods the energy that is so important to the character of our city. With NYC Create in Place, we’re offering a powerful new tool to aid these spaces when they need it most, guiding them through challenges so they can maintain a lasting foothold in the communities they’re a part of." - Commissioner Laurie Cumbo Learn more at www.nyc.gov/CreateInPlace. Pictured here is The Bushwick Starr ribbon cutting ceremony earlier this year on their new home in Bushwick. The city was proud to support the theater in their effort to establish a permanent presence in their longtime community, highlighting the strategies we are hoping to build on. Photo by Steven Pisano.