Public Art Education
This website is about Inglewood’s public art, civic buildings and creative communities. It aims to provide reference and educational tools for visitors, educators, and community groups using civic space as an opportunity for learning. On this site you will find photographs, maps and information about the City’s public art collection, its architecture and its history. Educators will find walking tours and lesson plans for diverse age groups and a powerpoint with presenter notes to help our communities engage the civic canvas of public and commercial spaces.
Inglewood’s Public Arts Education Program arises from the Cultural Arts Master Plan commissioned in 1996. The mission of the Cultural Arts Master Plan is to improve the quality of life in Inglewood through developing residents’ awareness, understanding, appreciation and participation in the arts and to infuse arts into all facets of Inglewood society, including: education, religion, business, social services, public agencies sports and entertainment. Use of this Plan is the principal tool by which this mission is achieved.
The Cultural Arts Master Plan represents a summary of research, planning, findings and recommendations made by a community volunteer Task Force, with input from all segments of the community.
The Arts and Education goals include increasing community arts appreciation and instruction for citizens and visitors. ‘Public art’ includes art and architecture owned by the City, as well as works of art and architecture on commercial sites, to comply with the City’s percent for art ordinance, or as civic goodwill.
The City of Inglewood is a full-service city that encompasses nine square miles and has a residential population of approximately 120,000. Approximately 800 full-time employees provide a full range of municipal services. The City Council City-Manager administration oversees police and fire protection services, engineering, public works, parks, recreation, library, planning, building, various maintenance services, water, wastewater and solid waste utility services.
In 2004, the City adopted the private percent for arts policy requiring developers of certain types of commercial facilities to commission on-site artwork valued at 1% of the project valuation, or contribute that amount to the Public Art Fund. The fund may solely be used for the creation and preservation of public art and related programs.
In 2011 The City adopted a percent for art ordinance to facilitate the placement of public art in public buildings valued at $250,000. The ordinance applies to any government agency building in the City. We see the results of these programs, and citizen and corporate efforts, today.
Arts Commission
The Arts Commission is an advisory body appointed by the Inglewood City Council.
- District 1 Commissioner: Claudia DeLeon
- District 2 Commissioner: Anne Cheek La Rose
- District 3 Commissioner: Phyllis Battle
- District 4 Commissioner: Vicki Perryman-Banks
- At-Large Commissioner: Kali Nikitas
The authorized role of the Arts Commission is to voice the needs and concerns of the community to the City Council through the Parks, Recreation and Library Services Department.
Regular Meetings
The Arts Commission meets on the Third Wednesday of every month at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall in the Community Room located on the 1st Floor. If a quorum is not achieved, the meetings may be cancelled.
Contact the Parks, Recreation and Library Services Department
(310) 412-8750 for the exact location of the monthly meeting.
Contact the Arts Commission:
City of Inglewood Arts Commission
c/o Parks, Recreation and Library Services Department
P.O. Box 6500
Inglewood, CA 90301
Phone: (310) 412-8750 / Fax: (310) 330-5750
Department of Parks, Recreation, and Library Services Staff
- Sabrina Barnes, Director
- Helen Lessick, Public Art Consultant
Culture Now
his website was designed by cultureNOW, a non profit 501c3 organization dedicated to the mission of public arts education and cultural tourism. cultureNOW believes that there are three facets to understanding a place: it’s built environment (architecture), cultural insertions (public art) and what happened there (history). cultureNOW is trying to demystify the design process in the belief that the public would be more engaged participants if they were able to understand it. To that end, it has been creating a Museum Without Walls to make the world outside accessible via smartphone technology.
- Abby Suckle Team Leader, Board President
- Anne Lewison Architect, cultureNOW Board
- Mark Favermann Favermann Design, cultureNOW Board
- Diana Darling Publisher The Architects Newspaper, cultureNOW Board
- Diana Pardue Chief, Museum Services, Ellis Island and the Statue of Liberty
- National Park Service, cultureNOW Board
- Anna Heineman Collection Manager cultureNOW’s MuseumWithout Walls
- Karolina Kurek Project Manager
- Paula Narvaez Research
- Eric Nishioka Graphic Design
- David Roy Photographer
Project Advisory Committee
- Renée Fox Artist, Inglewood Open Studios
- Debra Gerod Architect, Gruen Associates
- Sarah Graham Architect, agps Architecture
- Skip Halloran Inglewood Department of Parks, Recreation, and Library
- Services
- Anne Cheek La Rose Artist, Historian, Inglewood Art Commission
- Helen Lessick Artist, Project Manager Inglewood Public Art Education
- Michael Lehrer Lehrer Architect
- Mia Lehrer Landscape Architect, Mia Lehrer + Associates
- Michael Massenburg Artist, President Inglewood Cultural Arts
- Chris Mercier Architect, (fer) Studio
- Joel Rane Historian, Inglewood Public Library
- Rich Shelton Otis College of Art & Design Creative Action, Faculty Advisor
- Matt Tecle Otis College of Art & Design Creative Action, Faculty Advisor
- MonaLisa Whitaker Artist, Executive Director Inglewood Cultural Arts
And Special Thanks to the 'Village of Inglewood'
This project is truly a testament to the passion, commitment, and dedication of Inglewood’s friends and family, artists and neighbors who shared their love for this place and this community with us. In the past few years, throughout the country there has been quite a lot of discussion about the role of public art in placemaking. This project bears witness to the power of art in the public realm and the role it plays in binding a community together and in making a place come alive. It has been said that it takes a village to raise a ‘child’. We think it’s true.
- David Aguilar Former Art Commissioner
- Simon Elliott UCLA Library Special Collections
- Lesley Ellwood Public Art Consultant
- Michael Enomoto Architect, Gruen Associates
- Joan Francis Inglewood Park Cemetery
- Jack Feldman Water and Power Associates, Inc
- Michael Hricak Architect
- Rosa Lowenger Conservator
- Christina Pachecho Arts for LA
- Diane Sambrano Centinela Valley Historical Society
- Nikki Solomons American Institute of Architecture, Los Angeles Chapter
- Clay Stalls Department of Archives and Special Collections,
- Loyola Marymount University
- Brian Stewart Attorney
- Marvin Taff Architect
- Maggie Valentine University of Texas at San Antonio,
- AuthorThe Show Starts on the Sidewalk: An Architectural History of the
- Movie Theatre, Starring S. Charles Lee
- Sarah Weber LA Conservancy
- American Institute of Architects Los Angeles Chapter
- Otis College of Art and Design Creative Action Program
Photographs
Most of the photographs on this site were taken by Inglewood artist David Roy. However, the historical photographs come from the following collections who were kind enough to allow us to share them on this website.
- City of Inglewood Public Library Collection
- Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences
- Inglewood Historic Preservation Alliance
- Inglewood Park Cemetery
- UCLA Library Special Collections
- Water and Power Associates waterandpower.org