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For Immediate Release: December 21, 2023


Contact: publicaffairs@culture.nyc.gov


NYC DEPARTMENT OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS ADVANCES KEY PRIORITIES AND MAKES CRITICAL CULTURAL INVESTMENTS IN 2023

 

From historic investments in the city’s cultural infrastructure to advancing monumental new public artworks, in 2023 DCLA continued to work with the city’s cultural sector to foster a more vibrant, equitable, and inclusive cultural community for all New Yorkers

 

New York, NY - Today, Commissioner Laurie Cumbo highlighted the accomplishments of the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA) for 2023. From advancing major cultural infrastructure and public art projects, to maintaining the city’s record-high investments in cultural programming in every corner of the city, DCLA worked with its many public and private partners to build on the strengths of the cultural sector. As the largest funder of art and culture in America, DCLA under the Adams administration recognizes the essential role that art and culture play in the lives of New Yorkers, both as a pillar of the local economy and as a critical aspect of healthy, thriving communities.


"This administration understands that New York isn't New York without its cultural community, and as a result we work tirelessly to support this indispensable part of our city" said Cultural Affairs Commissioner Laurie Cumbo. "After two years in office, we're proud of our efforts to invest in a vibrant, equitable cultural sector that will continue to drive our economic recovery, while also serving to strengthen our social and community bonds in neighborhoods far and wide."


Below are highlights and examples of the accomplishments DCLA made in 2023 in collaboration with partners citywide:


Investing in NYC’s World Class Cultural Infrastructure

DCLA’s unique capital program invests city funding in construction, renovation, and equipment projects at cultural intuitions across the city. These critical upgrades expand access, grow audiences, and help to ensure NYC’s cultural infrastructure remains the best in the world – an essential part of the city’s status a cultural capital and magnet for visitors and talent from around the globe. This year, the city invested over $220 million in nearly 80 capital projects citywide, investments that Commissioner Cumbo highlighted as part of DCLA’s second annual Five Borough Tour. Throughout late summer and fall, the agency made stops at New York Botanical Garden in the Bronx, the Queens Museum in Queens, Sesame Flyers in Brooklyn, Snug Harbor Cultural Center on Staten Island, and The Africa Center in Manhattan to celebrate these transformative capital projects.


DCLA also joined cultural partners to mark the start and completion of projects that moved forward thanks to earlier city investments. These included:


  • Opening the American Museum of Natural History’s new Richard Gilder Center For Science, Education, and Innovation, which included a city investment of over $90 million;
  • Celebrating the latest phase of renovations to St. George Theater’s historic building on Staten Island's North Shore; the city has invested over $7 million in different components of the theater’s ongoing renovation effort;
  • Topping off the future home of the People’s Theater Project in Inwood, which includes a city investment of over $24 million to date;
  • Cutting the ribbon on a new education building for the Louis Armstrong House Museum in Corona, Queens, which includes more than $10 million in city investment
  • Topping out National Black Theatre’s new home in Harlem, which includes over $28 million in city investment;
  • Breaking ground on a new home for the Bushwick Starr in Brooklyn, which includes more than $2.5 million in city support;
  • Starting construction on Green-Wood Cemetery’s new Education and Welcome Center, which includes over $13 million in support from the city;
  • Cutting the ribbon on a newly-renovated La MaMa in the East Village, a project which included over $15 million in city investment;
  • Culture in New York City is a public-private partnership, and this year we also celebrated a number of new cultural assets driven by private sector partners. DCLA joined to celebrate the opening of The Perelman Performing Arts Center, Powerhouse Arts, 92nd Street Y’s newly renovated Buttenwieser Hall, and other cultural assets coming online, important projects advanced through broad collaborations.

 

Bringing Public Art to NYC’s Open Spaces

DCLA’s Public Art Unit commissions permanent public art through the city’s Percent for Art program; embeds artists within city agencies through the Public Artists in Residence (PAIR) program; and administers the City Canvas program, which transforms unsightly sidewalk sheds and scaffolds into platforms for temporary public art. In 2023, the unit had a number of notable accomplishments, including:



Materials for the Arts

DCLA's Materials for the Arts (MFTA) program is another crucial way that the agency supports nonprofits, educators, and city agencies with public programming. This year, MFTA’s 4,700 members had access to 1.5 million pounds of donated material valued at over $10 million – free of charge, as always – in MFTA’s 35,000 square-foot warehouse in Long Island City.


In addition to serving thousands of people each year from its warehouse, MFTA has been making efforts to meet even more New Yorkers where they are. Earlier this year, they teamed up with the NYC Public Schools Arts Office and Snug Harbor Cultural Center on Staten Island for a donation event that delivered supplies to dozens of local educators. This spring also saw the launch of “MFTA After Hours,” a new initiative that keeps the warehouse open for evening shopping so that more DOE teachers can visit the warehouse once the school day ends. In all, over 10,000 students and 2,000 teachers  and community-based educators were instructed by MFTA teaching artists last year.


MFTA’s 2023 accomplishments include:


  • MFTA's field trip program hosted 7,000 students in 293 classes (150 of these were FREE!);
  • MFTA worked in 27 NYC public schools offering in-school arts residencies to 13,017 students;
  • 2,146 teachers and community-based educators were instructed by MFTA Teaching Artists to gain professional credit;
  • 812 members of the general public attended our FREE in-person, Third Thursday events and over 4,000 members of the general public attended our outreach events in public places;
  • MFTA worked, alongside movie and television productions, to create a zero-waste initiative to give away thousands of items of clothing and set pieces to NYC shelters, asylum seekers, and arts nonprofits throughout the city.


Cultural Partnerships

DCLA’s mission is rooted in collaboration, partnership, and support for our city’s remarkable cultural sector, sister city agencies, and a vast variety of other community partners and stakeholders. In 2023, these collaborations included:


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About NYC Department of Cultural Affairs

The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA) is dedicated to supporting and strengthening New York City’s vibrant cultural life. DCLA works to promote and advocate for quality arts programming and to articulate the contribution made by the cultural community to the City’s vitality. The Department represents and serves non-profit cultural organizations involved in the visual, literary, and performing arts; public-oriented science and humanities institutions including zoos, botanical gardens, and historic and preservation societies; and creative artists at all skill levels who live and work within the City’s five boroughs. DCLA also provides donated materials for arts programs offered by the public schools and cultural and social service groups, and commissions permanent works of public art at City-funded construction projects throughout the five boroughs. For more information, visit nyc.gov/culture.