Orlando receives $1M grant for public art project

The City of Orlando has been chosen as one of eight cities across America to receive a $1 million grant to fund a public art project.

The third Public Art Challenge from Bloomberg Philanthropies also awarded Atlanta, Baltimore, Honolulu, Houston, Philadelphia, Phoenix and Salt Lake City with grant money for projects that address a range of civic issues, including public health, equity, climate change and more. More than 150 project proposals were received from 40 U.S. cities.

Orlando plans to use the funding to implement a project led by Juan William Chávez entitled “Art Pollination: Building Food Justice through Creativity.” The collaborative effort aims to engage artists and farmers to raise awareness about food insecurity and access to healthy food while focusing on food cultivation, beekeeping and pollinator education, food waste exploration and more.

“We are so excited to be selected for this grant opportunity and utilize art to shed light on a local issue and transcend a community challenge into a community conversation to help create and inspire change,” said Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer in a news release. “Our hope is that these new art installations further our sustainability goals to increase access to local foods and our vision to continue to grow and support our vibrant arts and cultural offerings.”

Central Florida nonprofits, including Black Bee Honey, 4Roots, Hebni Nutrition Consultants, Ideas for Us/Fleet Farming, Second Harvest Food Bank and the University of Florida, are joining the effort. The grant will also support local art initiatives and programs such as the Downtown Arts District, FusionFest and Snap! Orlando.

For more information, visit publicartchallenge.bloomberg.org.