Graciela Nira —2016 Fellow
Year: Class of 2018
Major: Political Science
Organization: Forecast Public Arts
I spent the summer with Forecast Public Art, a Twin Cities-based nonprofit who, put simply, make public art happen. As one of the country’s first nonprofit organizations dedicated to public art, Forecast has four main areas of work. Their award winning magazine, Public Art Review, started as the first magazine devoted to public art and maintains an international audience. Their education services bring art concepts and critical thinking into classrooms, while their community services help people in the public art planning process. Forecast also supports artists with grants and professional development opportunities.
Growing up in San Antonio, Texas, I noticed how infrastructural and development projects began to increasingly incorporate public art. Mostly familiar with grassroots forms of public art, I was intrigued by my changing surroundings and how these new art pieces would change my city and relationship with art, and cities nationwide. My project with Forecast had me synthesize experiences with their Richfield Artist Resident Engagement (RARE) program and research I did with the Metropolitan Region’s comprehensive urban plans. With RARE, I saw how communities, artists, and organizations come together to create art. After analyzing the language from comprehensive plans in the area, I created a report revealing regional trends around public art creation and community engagement that Forecast intends to share with their current consultant clients and other communities in the region. I am incredibly grateful to the Fellowship, Paul, and Forecast for making this opportunity possible. I hope to continue working with public art in the future.