The Artist-Developer: A Case Study of Impact through Art-Centered Community Development in Neighborhoods of Color

Densmore-Bey, Aisha

signed Executive Order 14084 - Promoting the Arts, the Humanities, and Museum and Library Services, which in part states: It is the policy of my Administration to advance the cultural vitality of the United States by promoting the arts, the humanities, and museum and library services. [...] First, in order to understand how the case study site fits into the larger picture, I present an overview and look at the city of Houston where Project Row Houses resides and the economic conditions that occurred during the project’s inception and in the early 2020s. [...] Figure 4 Diagram of the Third Ward and Project Row Houses 13 The Third Ward In 1872, the Reverend Jack Yates, along with other influential members of the African American community, was able to purchase four acres of land in the Third Ward that would become Emancipation Park, the location of annual Juneteenth celebrations marking when the last of the enslaved were notified of their freedom in 1865. [...] The Third Ward is the location of the historically Black university Texas Southern and of the performance venue the Eldorado Ballroom (Figure 4). [...] The restoration of the 22 houses designated as part of the project was not just a community or city-wide but a national effort: The National Endowment for the Arts gave $25,000 in seed money (for the original purchase).