Building Community - Art for Social Action (BCASA) is a project that supports the creation of participatory public artworks addressing social and environmental issues that resonate within local communities across the island and driving positive social change. To this end, it has awarded seven small grants to partnerships between artists and civil society organisations.
Bringing together artivists (artists + activists), CSOs, local responsible bodies, and diverse communities, the project connected the cultural and creative sectors with civil society. By facilitating these interactions, BCASA created and strengthened networks and collaborations towards the ultimate goal to establish lasting partnerships that bridge existing divides – particularly towards creating intercommunal exchanges.
Art For Social Action (ASA) is motivated by the belief that art and cultural expression offer a shared language and a meeting point for nurturing capacity-building and promoting political and cultural confidence. Through the successful implementation of projects, the small grants programme has demonstrated how visual art, when integrated into the CSO sector, can serve as a powerful medium for conveying universally impactful messages and profound concepts to broad audiences.
The artworks produced during this programme tackle a wide array of urgent issues, including public space and memory, migrant worker rights, the visibility of migrant artists, foster care initiatives, LGBTQI+ rights and experiences, marine ecology, and the environmental impact of fast fashion. These matters are relevant both locally and globally; while each project takes a hands-on approach to address specific local situations, they also set an example for other socially engaged practices that seek to employ arts-based methodologies. ASA aspires to be a model for engaged practice, where art and community are deeply interconnected.
Each action concluded with a public reveal event. The outcomes will remain accessible in various formats, including digital archives and murals. To cultivate lasting and meaningful relationships and impact, Art for Social Action has aimed to foster the creation of artworks, partnerships, and collaborations that extend beyond the programme's timeline.
Photo credit @Nikolas Karatzas
