Hope Comes From Art

They say that our ability to create and enjoy art is truly what sets people apart from animals. However, in some areas, art is not readily accessible to the people who need it the most. Children in the inner city don’t have the funds or ability to take in a night at the opera, and far too many people will go their entire lives without hearing beautiful voices raised in song. Special outreach programs are used to take the beauty of human creation out to the streets so that it can uplift and give hope to the people who need it the most. Here are just a few ways that volunteers are taking art out into all five boroughs of the Greater New York area.

Hospital Visits and Neighborhood Centers
Artists like opera singers and puppeteers will visit area hospitals, nursing homes and other facilities to make the residents smile. These simple visits can remind people of all the wonderful things that are out there in the world, and they serve to spread hope where it’s needed the most. 

Parks and Public Spaces
In the summer, artists use specially painted pop up pianos in New York to create gathering spaces out in the community. They allow people to host impromptu concerts and bring elegant, fun, and upbeat music to people in their daily lives. Professionals and amateurs alike may use the pianos to share their songs and add some cheer to the community.

Auditory and Visual Arts
The programs aren’t just for music. Dancers, puppeteers, and visual artists are also active in this type of community outreach, and they routinely work in the public spaces throughout the city to help people regain a sense of their humanity and feel more connected with each other.

Events take place throughout the year, and the agencies are always looking for more volunteers. Even people who believe that they don’t have any artistic talent can help by coordinating activities, transporting instruments or supplies, and getting the information out to the people who need it the most. The mobile programs are provided free of charge in order to make them more accessible to people throughout the region.