In the United States more than four-million elementary school students do not have access to arts education. Studies show that this can have a detrimental domino affect on school progress for years to come. That’s where ProjectArt comes in! The non-profit organization places after school art classes in public libraries in low income communities across New York City, Detroit and Miami.
On Friday, April 28, ProjectArt held their first ever benefit in NYC and it raised over $150,000 for arts education! Founder Adarsh Alphons, co-chairs Kyle DeWoody and Lisa Applebaum, and host Phil Chan headed up the “My Kid Could Do That” event which featured a benefit exhibition and auction. Bidders had their chance to own work by Katherine Bernhardt, Sanford Biggers, Cecily Brown, Kalup Linzy, Rirkrit Tiravanija, Wendy White, Dustin Yellin, and Philip Pearlstein.
The exhibition, which is now open to the public at Red Bull Arts New York, included childhood works by Cecily Brown, Daniel Arsham, Dustin Yellin, Grimanesa Amoros, Kalup Linzy, Katherine Bernhardt, Katherine Bradford, Kiki Valdes, Laurie Simmons, Matthew Ritchie, Olafur Eliasson, Osamu Kobayashi, Philip Pearlstein, Rashaad Newsome, Rirkrit Tiravanija, Sanford Biggers, Susan Te Kahurangi King, Terence Koh, Tom Sachs, Urs Fischer, Wendy White, Will Cotton, and Zoë Buckman.
The evening featured a live performance by Control the Sound, a rock, funk, and soul band comprised of seven kids from Brooklyn. Guests, including Waris Ahluwalia, Grimanesa Amorós, Zoë Buckman, Alexandra Cunningham Cameron, Heather Hubbs, Anne Huntington, Osamu Kobayashi, Kalup Linzy, Phillip Pearlstein, Kiki Valdes, Wendy White, Summer Wheat, Indira Cesarine, and Adam Yokell had the opportunity to have their portraits drawn by ProjectArt students, and to participate in a collaborative drawing on a rotating roll of paper.
Learn more about ProjectArt here.
