ArtsWestchester Receives $20,000 Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts

ArtsWestchester to Receive $20,000 Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts for Contemporary Textile Exhibition

February 4, 2020 (ArtsWestchester) White Plains, NY – –ArtsWestchester has been awarded a $20,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts to support a contemporary art exhibition titled The Social Fabric: Common Threads and Uncommon Visions. This art exhibition will feature new work and site-responsive commissions featuring Hudson Valley-area artists who use textiles to explore issues of broad social consequence.

ArtsWestchester’s project is among 1,073 projects across America totaling nearly $25 million that were selected during this first round of fiscal year 2021 funding in the Grants for Arts Projects funding category.

“The National Endowment for the Arts is proud to support this project from ArtsWestchester,” said Arts Endowment Acting Chairman Ann Eilers. “ArtsWestchester is among the arts organizations across the country that have demonstrated creativity, excellence, and resilience during this very challenging year.”

In recent decades, art made with fabric and fibers has commanded increasing attention.

ArtsWestchester CEO Janet Langsam explains, “Textiles are approachable artifacts of daily life. Beyond the clothes we wear, textiles and their associations, tactile qualities and labor-intensive ways in which they are made can trigger moments of nostalgia, or an increased social consciousness when thinking about the impact of ‘fast fashion’. As such, textile artworks offer a unique entree into contemporary art.”

Deputy Director of Programs Kathleen Reckling says, “This project includes commissioning three site-specific works that leverage the unusual spaces of ArtsWestchester’s White Plains gallery, housed in an historic bank building.  Westchester-based artist Natalya Khorover, for example, will stitch together discarded materials into an eco-conscious installation for ArtsWestchester’s sculpture court.”

Additional commissions, including one for the bank vault will be identified through an open call to regional artists. The Social Fabric exhibition will feature 12 area artists whose work explores complex topics such as cultural and sexual identity, power dynamics, economics and the vague line between “fine art” and craft.

For more information on projects included in the Arts Endowment grant announcement, visit arts.gov/news.

For more information about ArtsWestchester’s programs and cultural services, visit artsw.org

About ArtsWestchester

For over 50 years, ArtsWestchester has been the community’s connection to the arts. Founded in 1965, it is the largest private not-for-profit arts council in New York State. Its mission is to provide leadership vision and support to ensure the availability accessibility and diversity of the arts. ArtsWestchester provides programs and services that enrich the lives of everyone in Westchester County. ArtsWestchester helps fund concerts exhibitions and plays through grants; brings artists into schools and community centers; advocates for the arts, including public art; and builds audiences through diverse marketing initiatives. In 1998, ArtsWestchester purchased the nine-story neo-classical bank building at 31 Mamaroneck Avenue which has since been transformed into a multi-use resource for artists, cultural organizations and the community. A two-story gallery is located on the first floor of ArtsWestchester’s historic building on Mamaroneck Avenue in White Plains, NY. Artsw.org

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About ArtsWestchester

For more than 50 years, ArtsWestchester has been the community’s connection to the arts. Founded in 1965, it is the largest, private, not-for-profit arts council in New York State. Its mission is to provide leadership, vision, and support, to ensure the availability, accessibility, and diversity of the arts. ArtsWestchester provides programs and services that enrich the lives of everyone in Westchester County. ArtsWestchester helps fund concerts, exhibitions and plays through grants; brings artists into schools and community centers; advocates for the arts; and builds audiences through diverse marketing initiatives. In 1998, ArtsWestchester purchased the nine-story neo-classical bank building at 31 Mamaroneck Avenue which has since been transformed into a multi-use resource for artists, cultural organizations, and the community. A two-story gallery is located on the first floor of ArtsWestchester’s historic building on Mamaroneck Avenue.

For more than 50 years, ArtsWestchester has been the community’s connection to the arts. Founded in 1965, it is the largest, private, not-for-profit arts council in New York State. Its mission is to provide leadership, vision, and support, to ensure the availability, accessibility, and diversity of the arts. ArtsWestchester provides programs and services that enrich the lives of everyone in Westchester County. ArtsWestchester helps fund concerts, exhibitions and plays through grants; brings artists into schools and community centers; advocates for the arts; and builds audiences through diverse marketing initiatives. In 1998, ArtsWestchester purchased the nine-story neo-classical bank building at 31 Mamaroneck Avenue which has since been transformed into a multi-use resource for artists, cultural organizations, and the community. A two-story gallery is located on the first floor of ArtsWestchester’s historic building on Mamaroneck Avenue.