Art Start

12/16/2022

The realization of our imaginations is rooted in our ability to believe in ourselves and our capacity to create. We support every youth's right to a self-determined future, starting with fueling their belief in themselves. And you can too by donating to our End of Year campaign today.

21-year-old Art Start Emerging Artist, Demetria, is fueled by an overwhelming belief in herself - a value her father helped to instill in her. As a child, she and her family survived Hurricane Katrina, a life event that led to her family's relocation.

The process of starting over somewhere new forged in her a sense of self-determination. As an artist, Demetria creates through the medium of crochet, and she is also a born entrepreneur. Through her small business, she designs and sells custom crochet apparel. As an undergraduate student majoring in Psychology, Demetria hopes to eventually provide Creative Arts Therapy to her future patients.
The structure and cadence of Art Start's Creative Connections program helps Demetria stay deeply connected to her art and artistic community, and reaffirms her inherent belief in herself each week, while guiding her toward her overarching goals. Within her Art Start Emerging Artist cohort, she is a role model and has naturally emerged as a mentor who helps to foster her fellow artists' self-confidence.

Art Start's Creative Connections is a space for participants to affirm their belief in themselves on their paths to creating a future of their own design. You can support young people like Demetria by contributing to our End of Year campaign today. Our goal is to raise $50,000 to secure the 2023 program year, connecting Art Start participants firmly to their future in the creative industries.

12/09/2022

As artists, creatives, and visionaries, we understand the driving force imagination has on the world around us, and its power to influence how we create our future. It is at the foundation of every creative pursuit, dream, and realized project. At Art Start, we hope to give the space, support, guidance, and resources for youth to imagine a future of their own creation.
For Art Start participant,Tajh, his imagination gave him the freedom to pursue his creative dreams. Coming into Art Start as an emerging artist with the thought of focusing on music, Tajh never limited himself to just that medium. Throughout his time in our Creative Connections program, he developed interests in graphic design, fashion design, and entrepreneurship that acted as fuel for him to expand into new areas. We connected Tajh to our industry partner, Watson and Co., where he interned, learning how to develop design skills and direct his imagination towards starting his own brand.
Art Start's Creative Connections is an important space for so many teens and young adults to use their imagination in their art and in exploring their creative careers. You can support young people like Tajh by contributing to our End of Year campaign today. Our goal is to raise $50,000 to secure the 2023 program year, connecting Art Start participants firmly to their future in the creative industries.

11/29/2022

It’s ! Join in the global day of giving today and consider donating to Art Start. As a non-profit, we rely on the generosity of the community to support our programs and genuinely appreciate every contribution.
Donate today to help us reach our goal of raising $5,000 in support of our mission to use the creative process to nurture the voices, hearts, and minds of historically marginalized youth, offering them a space to imagine, believe, and represent their creative vision for their lives and communities.
Swipe through to get a look at the youth and projects you’d be supporting from our Creative Collectives, Creative Connections, Emerging Artist, and Public Exchanges programs!

11/04/2022

THANK YOU! We want to thank everyone who participated in the Art Start Family Portrait Project Photoshoot Day on October 29th!

Thank you to our sponsors , , and . Photo equipment was provided by

And to our amazing team of creative collaborators , , , , , Alonso Ayala, Geoffrey Leung, Kwami Merzier, Casanova Cabrera, and production assistants - Nancy Garcia and Kevin James. Special thanks to the staff for helping all the way through!
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The Art Start Family Portrait Project is a multimedia project and platform for the powerful stories, voices, and images of New York City families experiencing homelessness. Through portraits and story-telling, families invite the world to see them because….

08/26/2022

MKE! 5 MORE DAYS to see our SEE ME BECAUSE public transit campaign before it ends on 08/31! So many great memories, check out the slides to catch up on the campaign happenings.
We are showcasing portraits of local teens and young adults installed across 7 streetcar stations on , see detailed map in the second slide.
If you see us on your commute make sure to snap a photo and tag us, along with !
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SEE ME BECAUSE is the statement completed by youth participants in the Art Start Portrait Project, a year long project and platform for youth to establish their own narratives, explore the complexity of their identities, envision their futures, and express how they want to be seen by the world.
By utilizing public space as a contemporary art gallery, these portraits aim to spark dialogue around youth identities and self-determination. Each of these black and white photographic portraits are accompanied by each individual’s personal story as told in their own words.
Special thanks to our sponsors and
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Your donations help fuel Art Start’s youth programming across NYC and MKE. Make a contribution today at the link in our bio.

07/29/2022

Photos from Mayor Cavalier Johnson's post

07/21/2022

We are so excited to announce the launch of our SEE ME BECAUSE public transit campaign across both NYC and MKE! Beginning on July 25, we will be showcasing 20 portraits of local teens and young adults installed across New York’s MTA subway system and The Hop MKE streetcar route in Milwaukee. On July 28th, we will be having kick off events in both New York City and Milwaukee, click the link in our bio for more information and to RSVP! The portraits will be on view at the locations listed above, if you see us on your commute make sure to snap a photo and tag us, along with !
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SEE ME BECAUSE is the statement completed by youth participants in the Art Start Portrait Project, a year long project and platform for youth to establish their own narratives, explore the complexity of their identities, envision their futures, and express how they want to be seen by the world.
By utilizing public space as a contemporary art gallery, these portraits aim to spark dialogue around youth identities and self-determination. Each of these black and white photographic portraits are accompanied by each individual’s personal story as told in their own words.
Special thanks to our sponsors , , , , and
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Your donations help fuel Art Start’s youth programming across NYC and MKE. Make a contribution today at the link in our bio.

07/01/2022

Photos from Harbor District Milwaukee's post

05/25/2022

05/04/2022

Announcing the ART SAVES LIVES Music Benefit on May 25th at the iconic in Brooklyn. Reserve your tickets today for an intimate night of live music to support Art Start’s NYC youth creative programs. Click the link in our bio to learn more and get tickets! Thank you to our event sponsors and .

04/14/2022

Today we would like to feature Emerging Artist Myasia Mack! Myasia is a creative director born and raised in New York City. She is currently producing a fashion magazine that will explore style through various editorial themes. Featuring various companion pieces and collaborations, her goal is to achieve creation with intention, defining style through authenticity.

Keep an eye out for her upcoming zine! 📰✨
Here is a sneak peak with some behind the scenes photos and planning from her most recent photoshoot.

04/11/2022

Milwaukee's Spring Salon was held at Bradley Tech High School on Thursday, March 24. Young artists from several Milwaukee high schools (Bradley Tech, Escuela Verde, Rufus King, Reagan) enjoyed dinner, networking, and an opportunity to share their creative works-in-progress during this open critique session. Thanks to Bradley Tech for use of their space, and MPS Arts and Humanities Resource Staff Erin Bolte for popping in to share with us! We look forward to our upcoming April Creative Session, scheduled for Thursday, April 21...more info to come!

04/08/2022

Last month we celebrated Women’s History Month with moms and daughters at our South Bronx Family Residence. Led by renowned makeup artist and Art Start board member and Emmy Award winning makeup artist , participants were given an opportunity to explore full face makeup application and skincare regime with products graciously donated by .
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The Creative Collectives Program provides youth from communities historically marginalized with stability, safe space, and self-exploration opportunities, through a unique formula of arts programming that is student-centered, and fluid and adaptive yet focused and consistent.

04/07/2022

Introducing the SPICE SAVES LIVES burger! We’ve teamed up with in Bryant Park to create a delicious burger.
Our EAP youth visited the restaurant and got a tour by the head of culinary operations, William. They got to hear about his journey in becoming a chef and got to see how to make the burger that they helped design.
For the month of April, $1 from each purchase of the Spice Saves Lives Burger will go back to Art Start. It is a jerk spiced patty with a charred pineapple and maduro chutney, potato chips, and smoked mayo on brioche. Served with hibiscus lemonade. Yum!
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Our Emerging Artists Program (EAP) supports historically marginalized youth, ages 14 - 21, who have exhibited interest and artistic talent, but require more resources and support to turn that talent into opportunities for their self-determined future.
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Thanks to for partnering with us and supporting our programs.

04/05/2022

April is Diversity Month! Join Art Start as we celebrate Diversity; a successful community in which individuals of different race, ethnicity, religious belief, socioeconomic status, ability, language, geographic origin, gender, and sexual orientation bring their different knowledge, background, experience, and interest together for the benefit of the entire community. How do you celebrate diversity?

03/30/2022

Throughout the month of March, MKE & NYC EAP flexed their financial literacy muscles with professional athlete, certified life coach, and entrepreneur Ashton Khan. Residents focused on strengthening their positive mindset, budgeting tracking skills, and identifying opportunities to earn, save, and spend, to maximize their personal assets and ROI. Thanks, Coach !

Art Start’s Emerging Artists Program (EAP) supports historically marginalized youth, ages 14 - 21, who have exhibited interest and artistic talent, but require more resources and support to turn that talent into opportunities for their self-determined future.

03/22/2022

Art Start's Milwaukee Emerging Artists had the opportunity to visit New York City and the Art Start NYC youth and staff.

"Going on the New York trip helped me develop a better sense of independence when it comes to traveling on my own. It was also a great source of inspiration and growth in terms of my artistic and creative ambition." -Milwaukee Art Start Emerging Artist, Age 17

"The New York trip impacted me by helping me see the various opportunities that exist outside of Milwaukee. It allowed to dream bigger and seek career opportunities outside of my comfort zone. I was also able to see that my goals are achievable." -Milwaukee Art Start Emerging Artist, Age 20

"The New York trip impacted me in a very positive way. I have never been to a Broadway performance which was a very helpful and great experience. This trip helped me think about my interests in the arts and engineering." -Milwaukee Art Start Emerging Artist, Age 17

03/21/2022

Happy World Poetry Day!

03/20/2022

Happy International Day of Happiness! :-)

03/17/2022

The youth in our Creative Collectives program are shining bright with their Vincent van Gogh-inspired artwork! Using oil pastels, youth created their own renditions of 'Starry Night' in one of our most recent workshops 🌌 We can't wait to see what they make next!
Thanks to our partners NYC Department of Youth and Community Development for making these workshops possible!

03/16/2022

Today, we're featuring Erik Johnson. As Art Start's, Grants Manager, Erik oversees the many private and government funding partners that help advance our programs.

Erik T. Johnson has 20 years of development experience and joined Art Start as Grants Manager in 2021. He manages Art start’s portfolio of government and private supporters, oversees research of and identification of prospect funding opportunities, and supports the Executive Director in development strategy and planning. Erik graduated from Hunter College with a double major in Psychology and the Thomas Hunter Honors Program. He is also a published fiction author, songwriter, poet and performer who works closely with international classical composers.

03/16/2022

Thank you to for inviting Art Start to a showing of The Lion King Musical on Broadway! It was an incredible experience to witness the show and hear the cast talk about their journeys after!

03/10/2022

! Sharing a few of the recent amazing pieces created by youth at two of our newer locations with Sheltering Arms PS 104 and PS 105! Big shoutout to our longterm partners Sheltering Arms!

03/09/2022

A student at the Fashion Institute of Technology, with a passion for creativity, Kendra is a Fine Arts Major experienced in drawing, sculpting, painting and printmaking. Previous to connecting with Art Start, she has interned at the Bedford Stuyvesant office of Councilman Cornegy. She has also worked in nonprofit, with youth ages 5-10 in Brownsville. She is interested in combining both her loves of art, and humanitarianism. Growing up in Brooklyn, Kendra has been an artist since the age of 4. The same programs attended in her formative years, are the same programs that she wishes to support and promote, as she believes maintaining the bridge between the the inner city youth and art should be preserved and celebrated. Initially introduced as an intern with Art Start in 2020, she has joined the team as an Associate Programs Manager. She is set to receive her BFA in the Spring of 2022.

03/08/2022

Last week, Art Start staff and board members attended the special viewing of the "Art for Change - The Artist & Homeless Collaborative" exhibition at N-Y HS

The exhibition examines the history of modern homelessness in New York City through the lens of the Artist & Homeless Collaborative, a public art project founded in 1990 by multidisciplinary artist Hope Sandrow.

Thank you so much to Rebecca Klassen and Laura Mogilescu for a thoughtful curation and including Art Start in the project!

A collaborative quilt made by Art Start participants and a video of Art Start's 30 years history overview are featured in the exhibition.

03/04/2022

Jessiye Davis joined Art Start's Milwaukee Team in 2021. She brings over fifteen years of administrative experience including grant work, customer service and visual design. . Jessiye has always had a passion for supporting the arts, especially in youth and the school systems. Growing up in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, Jessiye was exposed to the arts from preschool through high school. Her parents always placed a value on the arts. This led to a love of music, visual, and performing arts. Jessiye attended an Art Start exhibition in 2019 and immediately fell in love with the work they do. As a former co-chair of the Culture of Inclusion with the Diversity in Action Committee at the Medical College of Wisconsin, Jessiye is excited to be involved in an organization that loves to inspire and encourage youth no matter what background or circumstances they are in.

03/02/2022

Art Start celebrates Women's History Month today and every day.

This year's theme for Women's History Month, designated annually by the National Women's History Alliance, is "Women Providing Healing, Promoting Hope." Join Art Start in celebrating the hard work of female caregivers and frontline workers throughout the pandemic as well as the thousands of ways that women of all cultures and identities have provided both healing and hope throughout history.

Which women inspire you? Comment below!

02/23/2022

Art Start honors black history this month by looking at creators making history today. These educators are changing the landscape now and creating a future and safe space for our youth.

02/17/2022

Last week, our emerging artists here in NYC attended the opening night show of The Music Man on Broadway!
Thank you so much to for inviting us and launching this initiative to make the show more accessible to youth and educators around NYC. It was amazing!

02/15/2022

Today Art Start youth were lead in a Valentine's Day workshop! They made gifts, cards and spent time talking and writing about things they love about themselves!

02/10/2022

Art Start honors black history this month by looking at creators making history today. These artist are changing the landscape now and creating a future for emerging black artists.

02/09/2022

Art Start Milwaukee Emerging Artists participate in Jeff Staple's Skillshare Chroma Course: "Build Your Brand and Business". Skillshare generously sponsored free spots to NYC & MKE youth through an emerging partnership.