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2016 Annual Report Building Community and Inspiring Transformation Through Free Public Participatory Art in Our Cities

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2016 Annual Report Building Community and Inspiring Transformation Through Free Public Participatory Art in Our Cities 2016 Annual Report Building community and inspiring transformation through free public participatory art in our cities The Boulder Beetle Project by Emma Hardy at FIGMENT Boulder / Photo © 2016 Lee Stonehouse Dear FIGMENT supporters and friends, As I write this, our most recent FIGMENT event was our first- ever event in Europe, in Derby in the UK. And our next event is our first-ever event in Asia, in Hong Kong in February 2017. With this event (our 52nd!), FIGMENT will have taken place in 18 cities in 5 countries on 4 continents over the past 10 years. And it still feels like we’re just getting started. There is so much more we can do, so many more people we can impact and transform with the power of participatory art. As we look ahead to 2017, here are a few big ideas for where we go next: Blow it up. FIGMENT works best when it’s new and fresh. We have to keep looking at it with fresh eyes and view it as an experiment, and invite new people in to make art and OUR VISION create together. It’s never the same twice. We seek to empower everyone to create and share, transforming our communities and our Sharpen the invitation. Inclusion has been a part of our society through participation and creativity. ethos since we started, but simply being inclusive isn’t enough. If we want true diversity at all levels of our OUR MISSION organization and movement, we have to actively invite people in who are not like us, and who are not close to or FIGMENT’s mission is to create participatory and inclusive cultural events and experiences part of our community already. that build community and inspire personal and social transformation. Understanding and empathy. Participatory art can be a OUR VALUES FIGMENT Executive Producer and Executive Director David Koren at FIGMENT powerful tool for people to understand each other and to be ALPHA / Photo © 2016 Jonathan Moll We believe fundamentally that every human being is equally important, and that a just society able to see the world through another’s eyes. In these times is one that makes room for the participation and expression of everyone. In order to create a of division, we need to find ways to better utilize art to bring people together. world in which this is possible, we have adopted eleven founding principles that summarize our values: Participation, Decommodification, Inclusion, Expression, Self-Reliance, Giving, Bridging social capital. Too much cultural activity in our world serves a limited audience, whether defined Communal Effort, Civic Responsibility, Leave No Trace, Immediacy, and Gratitude. socioeconomically or in terms of a specific ethnic group. We have to utilize the arts as a platform to bridge communities and bring people together. Participatory art is ideal for bridging communities. Thank you so much for your support of FIGMENT and for working with us to build a society that respects everyone equally and that encourages everyone to create and share together. Sincerely, David Koren Executive Producer and Executive Director FIGMENT Dear FIGMENT supporters and friends, As I write this, our most recent FIGMENT event was our first- ever event in Europe, in Derby in the UK. And our next event is our first-ever event in Asia, in Hong Kong in February 2017. With this event (our 52nd!), FIGMENT will have taken place in 18 cities in 5 countries on 4 continents over the past 10 years. And it still feels like we’re just getting started. There is so much more we can do, so many more people we can impact and transform with the power of participatory art. As we look ahead to 2017, here are a few big ideas for where we go next: Blow it up. FIGMENT works best when it’s new and fresh. We have to keep looking at it with fresh eyes and view it as an experiment, and invite new people in to make art and OUR VISION create together. It’s never the same twice. We seek to empower everyone to create and share, transforming our communities and our Sharpen the invitation. Inclusion has been a part of our society through participation and creativity. ethos since we started, but simply being inclusive isn’t enough. If we want true diversity at all levels of our OUR MISSION organization and movement, we have to actively invite people in who are not like us, and who are not close to or FIGMENT’s mission is to create participatory and inclusive cultural events and experiences part of our community already. that build community and inspire personal and social transformation. Understanding and empathy. Participatory art can be a OUR VALUES FIGMENT Executive Producer and Executive Director David Koren at FIGMENT powerful tool for people to understand each other and to be ALPHA / Photo © 2016 Jonathan Moll We believe fundamentally that every human being is equally important, and that a just society able to see the world through another’s eyes. In these times is one that makes room for the participation and expression of everyone. In order to create a of division, we need to find ways to better utilize art to bring people together. world in which this is possible, we have adopted eleven founding principles that summarize our values: Participation, Decommodification, Inclusion, Expression, Self-Reliance, Giving, Bridging social capital. Too much cultural activity in our world serves a limited audience, whether defined Communal Effort, Civic Responsibility, Leave No Trace, Immediacy, and Gratitude. socioeconomically or in terms of a specific ethnic group. We have to utilize the arts as a platform to bridge communities and bring people together. Participatory art is ideal for bridging communities. Thank you so much for your support of FIGMENT and for working with us to build a society that respects everyone equally and that encourages everyone to create and share together. Sincerely, David Koren Executive Producer and Executive Director FIGMENT FIGMENT 2016 Highlights FIGMENT by the numbers 2016 The year of FIGMENT’s 10th anniversary was a momentous one, on many levels. We held our 51st event including our first European event in Derby, UK—planting a FIGMENT flag on our 3rd continent and 4th country. Founder and Executive Producer David Koren released a book on FIGMENT. 2016 was also a year of obstacles, including an extreme spike in our liability insurance cost, which put significant strain on our finances and threatened some of our programs. All in all, the year gave us hope and reassured us that our mission of connecting people through interactive art has never been more essential. In 10 years (2007–2016) The FIGMENT Book FIGMENT has created 51 events FIGMENT Founder and Executive Producer David Koren wrote and published a book in 17 cities on FIGMENT: FIGMENT. What is this? Why is nothing for sale? Why is everyone smiling? Packed with personal stories about FIGMENT’s past and present, and vibrant photos in 4 countries from FIGMENT events from cities around the world, the book is a case for creativity, collaboration, learning, and gratitude, in a world that is increasingly distant and on 3 continents virtual. It is an invitation to imagine a place where everyone is invited to create, share and grow. The book is available on Blurb.com (in hardcover and softcover) and on Amazon.com (in softcover and ebook editions). Get your copy and write us a review! FIGMENT Global Business Manager Sara Muskulus involving 1000 artists a year with the first proof of the FIGMENT Book / Photo © 2016 David Koren and 1000 volunteers a year FIGMENT Derby: The First FIGMENT Event in Europe to reach 100,000 people a year On August 20th, we held our first European FIGMENT event at Derby’s Silk Mill, the location of the world’s first factory. Highlighting over 20 interactive projects in roughly 10 cities a year for 800+ participants, the event celebrated interaction and craft. The Silk Mill is currently undergoing a significant reinvention into a museum of making. The all for only $250,000 a year new museum will act as a space to learn about and examine Derby’s industrial past while celebrating and enabling new makers through learning programs, community activities, residencies, and maker spaces, making it the perfect location for FIGMENT. In 2016 FIGMENT Global Community Manager Emma Tuccillo with yarnbombing at FIGMENT Derby / we created FIGMENT events Partnerships Photo © 2016 David Koren We place significant value on our relationships with key institutions and consider them to be a leading factor in our in 9 cities ongoing success in each of our cities. This year, we learned the value of educational and museum partnerships at our events in North Adams, Boulder, Oakland, and Derby, UK, as well as the ongoing strength in governmental and in 3 countries organizational partners in New York and other cities. We look forward to developing these relationships further while seeking out new opportunities. Our 2016 partners included quite a few institutions in the cities in which we are active, plus our 4th ALPHA event including the following: Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art, Friends of Governors Island, the Trust for Governors Island, the National Park Service, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, Boulder and arts education programs Public Library, Rose Kennedy Greenway Conserservancy, Chicano Park Steering Committee, Derby Museums, Mosswood Park, and many others. in Oakland FIGMENT 2016 Highlights FIGMENT by the numbers 2016 The year of FIGMENT’s 10th anniversary was a momentous one, on many levels. We held our 51st event including our first European event in Derby, UK—planting a FIGMENT flag on our 3rd continent and 4th country.
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